Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of using blockchain technology to increase the transparency of supply chains and help prevent modern slavery.

The UK was the first country in the world to require businesses to report on the steps they have taken to tackle modern slavery. The landmark provision in section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 requires businesses, in all sectors, including the textiles industry, with a turnover of £36m or more to report annually on the steps they have taken to prevent modern slavery in their operations and supply chains. To improve the quality and detail of reporting and accelerate action to prevent modern slavery, the Government has committed to strengthen the reporting requirements on businesses and to introduce financial penalties for those that fail to meet their obligations under section 54.

The Government expects businesses to determine the most appropriate methods to assess and tackle modern slavery based on the nature of their operations and supply chains. We encourage businesses to be transparent about the instances or indicators of modern slavery and prioritise action based on risk, and where they can have most impact. Our guidance suggests that they should include the risk assessment and due diligence they undertook to prevent and tackle modern slavery in their modern slavery statements and demonstrate their progress by setting and reporting against clear targets.

The Government regularly engages with businesses, civil society and industry experts in the sector to understand emerging best practice, evidence and innovations which might support businesses in their efforts to tackle modern slavery