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Overview

This bill amends the Modern Slavery Act 2015 to increase transparency in supply chains regarding slavery and human trafficking. It extends the requirement for slavery and human trafficking statements to public authorities and strengthens enforcement by allowing contracting authorities to exclude businesses that fail to comply.

Description

The bill makes several key changes:

• Extends Reporting Requirements: It mandates that all public authorities, in addition to commercial organisations meeting specific criteria, must publish annual slavery and human trafficking statements. These statements must detail actions taken to prevent slavery and human trafficking in their supply chains. If no steps are taken, the statement must explain why.
• Increases Transparency: The Secretary of State must publish a publicly accessible list of all commercial organisations required to submit statements, categorized by sector.
• Strengthens Enforcement: Contracting authorities are now required to exclude economic operators from procurement processes if they have not prepared a slavery and human trafficking statement, as required.
• Provides Guidance: The Secretary of State will publish guidance for contracting authorities on complying with the new regulations.

Government Spending

The bill's impact on government spending is not explicitly stated. The costs will likely involve resources for the Secretary of State to publish the required lists and guidance, and for public authorities to prepare and publish their statements. No specific figures are provided in the bill text.

Groups Affected

• Public Authorities: Will be required to produce and publish slavery and human trafficking statements, incurring administrative costs and potentially requiring internal policy changes.
• Commercial Organisations: Those already covered by the 2015 Act will face stricter enforcement and will need to ensure compliance; those newly covered will have to implement reporting systems.
• Contracting Authorities: Will need to implement processes to verify the compliance of economic operators and exclude non-compliant ones.
• Economic Operators: Those who fail to comply may be excluded from public sector contracts.
• Victims of Modern Slavery: The bill aims to help protect them by increasing transparency and accountability within supply chains.