On 10th May, it was announced by the Government that a Modern Slavery Bill is being introduced to strengthen the protection for victims of human trafficking and modern slavery.
The Bill would bring into effect changes to section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (MSA) and in addition, increase the accountability of companies and other organisations to drive out modern slavery from their supply chains.
The main elements of the Modern Slavery Bill are:
- Strengthening the requirements on businesses with a turnover of £36 million or more to publish an annual modern slavery statement highlighting the steps taken to prevent modern slavery in their operations and supply chains.
- Mandating the reporting areas to be covered in modern slavery statements; requiring organisations to publish their statements on a government-run registry, extending these requirements to public bodies and introducing civil penalties for organisations that do not comply with the requirements.
- Strengthening the operation of Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Orders and Slavery and Trafficking Risk Orders, which place conditions on an individual, to prevent and disrupt modern slavery crimes and better protect victims.
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