Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that goods produced by the forced labour of Uyghur Muslims in China are not included in any Government procurement contracts.

HM Government is committed to preventing modern slavery occurring in public sector supply chains. The Cabinet Office has published commercial policy and guidance setting out the steps that all Government departments must take to identify and mitigate modern slavery and labour abuse risks throughout the commercial life cycle - focusing on the areas of highest risk. This policy is mandatory for all Central Government Departments, their Executive Agencies and Non-Departmental Public Bodies.

The Government has taken a number of measures to help ensure that no British organisations are profiting from or contributing to human rights violations against the Uyghurs or other minorities. We have introduced guidance for UK businesses on the risks of conducting business in Xinjiang, implemented enhanced export controls, and committed to introducing new procurement guidance for Government bodies as well as financial penalties for non-compliance with section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act.

The Procurement Bill, which is being considered by Parliament, strengthens the rules around excluding suppliers due to serious misconduct anywhere in their operations, including the supply chain. This includes explicit provision for suppliers to be prevented from bidding for contracts where there is evidence of their involvement in modern slavery.