The statement, which
is published to coincide with the fifth anniversary of the
Modern Slavery Act 2015, outlines action being taken to
ensure that taxpayers’ money does not line the pockets of
criminals who exploit vulnerable workers.
Thousands of businesses are currently required to publish
annual modern slavery statements under the Act.
To lead the way for the public sector, the UK government
has now published its statement which assesses the risk of
modern slavery across around £50 billion of its annual
spending. Individual ministerial departments will publish
their modern slavery statements from 2020/21.
The government has also consulted on strengthening the
requirement for large businesses to publish their modern
slavery statements – including extending this to public
bodies – and has committed to developing a registry for
modern slavery statements.
Safeguarding Minister said:
As we acknowledge everything this government has achieved
for victims of modern slavery over the last five years, I
am proud that we are taking this unprecedented step to
show how we are tackling slavery during procurement.
We are committed to targeting perpetrators and
safeguarding victims of this horrific crime, both
domestically and globally.
Cabinet Office Minister said:
As a government, we are committed to driving out modern
slavery in all forms, so it is crucial that we make sure
it’s nowhere to be seen in the supply chains which helps
provide our vital public services.
I am also delighted that across government, we will be
publishing our own modern slavery statements, so people
can see the work we are doing to fight this terrible
practice.
The statement sets out the government’s efforts towards
eradicating modern slavery from its supply chains,
including direct engagement with around 400 suppliers on
implementing effective modern slavery due diligence and
delivering training to more than 250 government commercial
staff.
The government has already announced plans to deliver
greater social value through its commercial activities,
that will incentivise businesses to become more responsible
and sustainable.
The Modern Slavery Act 2015 continues to be a landmark
piece of legislation, which gives law enforcement greater
powers to tackle modern slavery and improved essential
support for victims.
Measures in the Act included:
- introduction of the statutory defence for victims who
were compelled to commit criminal offences
- creation of Independent Child Trafficking Guardians in
England and Wales to advocate on behalf of trafficked
children
- creation of the role of the Independent Anti-Slavery
Commissioner to encourage good practice in tackling modern
slavery and the identification of victims.
Earlier this week the government published statutory guidance
for safeguarding victims of modern slavery that
sets out the support available to victims and the process
for determining whether someone is a victim.
The number of live police operations has increased thanks
to the provisions under the Act, from 188 police operations
in December 2016 to at least 1,810 in February 2020. In the
year to September 2019, the police recorded 6,544 offences
of modern slavery, an increase of 53% compared with the
previous year (4,268 offences).
Dame Sara Thornton, Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner,
said:
Five years ago, the Modern Slavery Act introduced
ground-breaking new measures to improve the protection
offered to victims and survivors of modern slavery and to
bolster the law enforcement response against perpetrators
of this devastating crime.
However, protecting victims and prosecutors is not
enough. We need to do much more to tackle the structures
that allow exploitation to thrive. Ensuring that
businesses, public services and government are doing all
they can to prevent trafficking from taking place in
their supply chains is vital.
I welcome the publication of the government modern
slavery statement and this commitment to continue taking
a world-leading approach to tackling modern slavery.
