U.K. Risks Being A Dumping Ground For Goods Made Using Forced Labor

Forbes

5 days ago

A young person sifts through stones at a cobalt and copper mining pit on May 25, 2025, in Kolwezi, ... More Democratic Republic of Congo. (Photo credit:)
On July 24, 2025, a Parliamentary committee in the United Kingdom published a report warning that the U.K. has fallen behind in its approach to addressing forced labor in supply chains and is at risk of becoming a dumping ground for goods made using forced labor. The report produced by the Joint Committee on Human Rights, a committee consisting of members of both Houses of Parliament (House of Commons and House of Lords) to examine matters relating to human rights within the United Kingdom, found that human rights abuses are so pervasive in key sectors it is inevitable these goods are entering the U.K. market, as no effective safeguards are in place. The report recommends, among others, that import bans should be established for goods linked to forced labor, in line with the approach taken by the United States and the European Union.
The Joint Committee on Human Rights received significant amount of evidence of modern day slavery in the supply chain reaching the U.K. It identified that the U.K. imports over $26 billion of goods from five sectors where high levels of forced labor are found: electronics, garments, fish, timber and textiles. There is also evidence of human rights abuses in other industries – a BBC World Service report uncovered evidence of processed tomatoes labeled as being from Italy were in fact highly likely to have been produced using forced labor in China.
In relation to modern day slavery in the garments industry, the report raised the concern that, as reports suggest, 1 in 5 garments made from cotton have been linked to forced labor in the Xinjiang area of China, a community subjected to crimes against humanity and genocide in the country. The Committee heard from Rahima Mahmut, of the World Uyghur Congress, about the dire situation of the Uyghurs and other minority groups, including discriminative forced labor and re-location practices that they are subjected to in China, including the separation of families. The Committee noted that many of the cotton products coming to the U.K., may be tainted in forced Uyghur labor in Xinjiang, and retailers cannot guarantee that this is not the case. Among others, the Committee raised that when retailer Shien gave evidence to the Business and Trade Committee, their representative could not confirm whether cotton from Xinjiang was used in clothing sold to U.K. consumers.
The report further noted that evidence suggests that North Korean workers are being subjected to forced labor on Chinese fishing vessels. This is said to be part of North Korea's export of its citizens as laborers in order to raise funds for the regime, including its weapons programs. The fish caught by North Korean workers are sent to China for processing before being sold on to markets in the Europe and the United States. In 2023, Britain imported £307 million worth of fish from China, making China the U.K.'s second largest supplier of fish.
The Committee also heard from Michael Rudin, the Executive Producer of the BBC World Service investigation 'Blood on the Shelves.' The investigation found evidence that processed tomatoes were being sold in the U.K. and labeled as being from Italy despite highly likely being produced in China under forced labor conditions.
Furthermore, the Committee noted that solar panels are at a high risk of exposure to forced labor due to their reliance on polysilicon largely mined and processed in regions with high risks of exposure to forced labor. Katherine Bryant, Director of Operations, Walk Free, told the Committee that due to a lack of traceability, it is almost impossible to know if any solar panel sold in the U.K. is free from forced labor or not.
Lastly, the Committee noted the reports of alleged forced labor and child labor in the mining industry. In particular, there is evidence of the use of child labor in artisanal mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). As the DRC sources around 70% of the world's cobalt, a key ingredient in lithium-ion batteries and magnets, it is likely that minerals sourced in the DRC will have entered U.K. supply chains.
The report makes a very strong case that U.K.'s current legal and regulatory frameworks are inadequate for confronting the complexity of abuses in global supply chains. It notes that businesses should be mandated to undertake due diligence of their supply chains, with penalties levied for non-compliance and new routes for victims to bring their case to U.K. courts. The report further recommends that import bans should be established for goods linked to forced labor, in line with the approach taken by the United States and in the European Union. In the United States, the law creates a rebuttable presumption that all products coming from Xinjiang, China, are tainted in modern day slavery, unless proven otherwise. The report calls upon the government to set out who is responsible for identifying and seizing these illicit goods and establish robust oversight mechanisms for the new import ban.
Chair of the Joint Committee on Human Rights, Lord David Alton commented:
'Over the course of this inquiry we have seen evidence of human rights abuses in a wide range of industries that are a major part of U.K. trade. Other nations have progressed in eradicating these appalling abuses from their supply chains, but the UK has been left behind. Global supply chains are highly complex and abuses can be well hidden. A voluntary system is not going to be enough to root out wrongdoing. We are calling for a range of measures to give the UK robust protections against these goods entering the market.'
The U.K. Government will now have to respond to the report and explain whether and how it will implement the recommendations. The U.K. is not alone with the problem. Too many countries globally do not have effective laws, policies and mechanisms that would equip them to combat modern day slavery in the supply chain. The global problem of modern day slavery requires truly global responses. This is also where consumers buying the goods tainted in modern day slavery have to speak out and make it clear that they do not want to be part of the crime.