Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that British businesses follow human rights obligations set out in the Second Report of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Session 2021-22 on Never Again: The UK's Responsibility to Act on Atrocities in Xinjiang and Beyond, HC 198, published on 29 June 2021.

The UK has carefully considered and implemented several of the Foreign Affairs Committee's recommendations on responding to human rights violations in China since 2021. This Government will stand firm on human rights, including in Xinjiang, where China continues to persecute and arbitrarily detain Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities.

Regarding recommendations on forced labour and the business sector, this Government has launched a Responsible Business Conduct (RBC) review to consider the effectiveness of the UK's current RBC measures and alternative policy options, including approaches to tackle forced labour. There are a number of ways in which HMG currently tackles the issue of Uyghur forced labour in supply chains. The Overseas Business Risk Guidance makes clear to UK companies the risk of operating in certain regions and urges them to conduct appropriate due diligence when making business decisions. The UK also has reporting requirements for companies with a turnover of £36 million or more under Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act.