Posted by: DHSC Media
Team
As part of the UK government’s world-leading ambition to tackle
modern slavery, the Department of Health and Social Care has
today published the Review of the risk of Modern Slavery and
Human Trafficking in the NHS supply chain.
Building on the Modern Slavery Act, the Health and Social Care
Act 2022 committed the Secretary of State to deliver a review
into the risk of modern slavery within NHS supply chains and set
of recommendations to mitigate these, by the end of 2023.
The review found that:
- Almost 2 in 3 suppliers reviews were identified as at low
risk of modern slavery.
- Almost a fifth of suppliers were required to have a Modern
Slavery Statement, but almost half of them had chosen to complete
one, demonstrating proactive steps towards eradicating modern
slavery.
This review maintains the government’s steadfast commitment to
eradicating modern slavery from the UK’s healthcare system.
Working across complex UK and global healthcare supply chains
this review considered over 1,300 suppliers representing 600,000
NHS products to identify modern slavery risks and build a more
ethical and reliable UK health system.
In delivering the recommendations of the review the department
will work in partnership with NHS England and NHS Supply Chain
to:
- Lay new regulations, as required by Section 81 of the Health
and Care Act 2022, which set standard rules for procurement of
healthcare products and services;
- Develop a cross-government response to map supply chains to
improve knowledge and where action must be taken;
- Enable NHS staff to better understand and address modern
slavery risks.
The department, NHS England and NHS Supply Chain will make every
effort to eradicate modern slavery in healthcare supply chains,
striving to take appropriate action where feasible.
