<p data-pm-slice="1 1 []">The House of Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights has launched an inquiry into the legal and voluntary frameworks underpinning the UK’s response to forced labour in international supply chains. It will also consider whether changes are needed to prevent goods from being sold domestically where their global supply chains are linked to forced labour and where responsibility should lie for preventing those products from entering the UK (for example, with government, regulations, business, or consumers). The inquiry will look at whether all companies should be required to manage the risk of forced labour in their supply chains. This will include considering the level of due diligence it is reasonable to expect from companies and public sector buyers before they decide whether to contract with suppliers. The Committee will also evaluate international approaches to these issues to assess whether there are other effective legislative frameworks that would work well in the UK. This inquiry comes against a background of concern that since the enactment of the Modern Slavery Act in 2015, the UK has fallen behind other countries in its response to slavery in supply chains. For example, the EU has already introduced legislation to prevent goods linked to forced labour from being sold in the EU.</p>