According to research published by the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, more than one third of organisations required to complete a statement in compliance with the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 (“Act”) have failed to do so.

Under section 54 of the Act, organisations that carry on business in the UK and have turnovers of £36 million or more are required to produce a statement each year setting out the steps they have taken to ensure that their business and supply chains are slavery free, or a statement that they have taken no steps to do this. “Slavery” includes slavery in the narrow sense (i.e. where any rights of ownership are exercised over a person), servitude (i.e. the obligation of a person to provide services imposed by the use of coercion and denoting an obligation to live on another person’s property with the impossibility of changing his or her condition) and forced labour (i.e. where work or service is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the person has not offered himself or herself voluntarily.).  “Human trafficking” essentially requires that a person arranges or facilitates the travel of another person with a view to that person being exploited (e.g. being subjected to slavery, servitude or forced labour).”