Partner London
"After 11 years without amendment, on 30 June 2026, the UK Government introduced proposed amendments to section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, through the Immigration and Asylum Bill."
After 11 years without amendment, on 30 June 2026, the UK Government introduced proposed amendments to section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, through the Immigration and Asylum Bill (“I&A bill”).
Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act sets out the requirement for companies of a certain nature and size to produce annual modern slavery statements.
The I&A bill is working its way through the legislative approval process. It is currently being reviewed by a Public Bill Committee which is expected to report back to the House of Commons by 3 November 2026.
Key changes
The I&A bill endeavours to change the reputation of section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act as a ‘toothless tiger’ by proposing several significant amendments to the reporting requirements.
Most importantly, the I&A bill proposes to:
- take a ‘comply or explain’ approach to disclosures;
- require a far broader and more specific range of disclosures including with respect to risk assessments, due diligence and effectiveness of measures; and
- impose financial penalties for breach of the requirements.
Some of the key changes in the I&A bill are set out in the table below alongside the current position under section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act.
| Status Quo | Proposed amendment | |
|---|---|---|
| Approval and certification of the statement | S 54(6) requires a modern slavery statement to be approved by the board/members and signed by a director (or equivalent). | The company (or its parent company) will be required to certify its modern slavery statement. This is done through the same approval and/or signing method as currently exists but must only be signed/approved after the end of the financial year. The date of signature of approval must be specified. |
| Declaration of truth | N/A | The individual who signs the statement must also include a declaration that the statement is accurate to the best of their knowledge and belief. |
| Timing | S 54 does not provide a timeframe for publication of modern slavery statements. However, the government guidance states that it should be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year and at most within six months of the end of the financial year. | The I&A bill seeks to mandate the timeframes set out in the government guidance – statements should be published as soon as reasonably practicable and in any event, within six months of the end of the financial year. |
| Mandatory information to include – the organisation | S 54 does not require any particular information to be provided about the company. S 54(5)(a) states that a statement may include information about the organisation’s structure, business and supply chains. | Schedule 4ZA of the I&A bill requires companies to include information about the entity’s structure, operations and supply chains. |
| Mandatory information to include – steps taken | S 54(4) requires a statement to disclose “the steps the organisation has taken during the financial year to ensure that slavery and human trafficking is not taking place (i) in any of its supply chains, and (ii) in any part of its own business” or a statement that no steps have been taken. It is not mandatory to report on any particular type of ‘step taken’. S 54(5) states a company may include information about things such as policies, due diligence, areas of risk and effectiveness. | Schedule 4ZA requires companies to set out specific information or explain why it is not set out. This information includes: • the parts of an organisation's structure/ operations/ supply chain where there are risks of slavery/human trafficking; • the steps taken to assess and reduce or remove the risk; • the organisation's policies in relation to slavery and human trafficking; • due diligence processes undertaken; • any training made available to employees of the organisation and its supply chains about slavery/human trafficking; and • an assessment of the effectiveness of the organisation's steps undertaken during the financial year, measured against performance indicators. |
| Publication | S 54(7) requires a company with a website to publish its modern slavery statement on its website and include a link to the statement in a prominent place on the homepage. If a company does not have a website, it must provide a copy of the statement on request. | The I&A bill retains the requirement to publish on a website. Additionally, it empowers the Secretary of State to introduce regulations requiring an organisation to submit its modern slavery statement and the relevant website link to the Secretary of State. This may result in the establishment of a centralised registry for modern slavery statements, such as those which exist in Australia and Canada. |
| Enforcement and Financial Penalties | S 54(11) empowers the Secretary of State to enforce the provisions of s 54 by bringing civil proceedings in the High Court for an injunction for specific performance. However, in practice, this power has never been exercised. | The I&A bill retains the Secretary of State’s ability to seek an injunction. Additionally, it introduces financial penalties for companies that fail to meet the new reporting obligations "without reasonable excuse”. The maximum penalty is the greater of: • 1% of an organisation's total turnover; or • £1m. |
Alternatives
A Private Members’ Bill (the Commercial Organisations and Public Authorities Duty (Human Rights and Environment) Bill) was also introduced in the House of Lords on 17 June 2026, by Baroness Young of Hornsey.
This bill goes further still by proposing to place a duty on companies to prevent human rights and environmental harms in their operations and value chains, including through requiring that companies conduct human rights due diligence. It also seeks to hold companies criminally liable where an associated person engages in a modern slavery offence for the benefit of the company.
However, other bills of this nature emanating from the House of Lords have historically not gained the traction or support necessary to become law.
"Given the time it will take to implement the various measures and the allowance for transitional provisions, we would expect that the earliest date it would be enforced would be for reports relating to the financial year commencing 2027."
Timing
As the I&A bill is only at the committee stage, it is difficult to estimate when the bill will pass into law. Once it receives Royal Assent, the Secretary of State will then need to introduce secondary legislation to bring it into force. The I&A bill permits the Secretary of State to introduce regulations for transitional provisions related to its coming into force.
Given the time it will take to implement the various measures and the allowance for transitional provisions, we would expect that the earliest date it would be enforced would be for reports relating to the financial year commencing 2027.
Whilst this leaves some time to prepare, it is important to remember that, in order to report on all the matters mandated under the I&A bill, the company will need to have undertaken the requisite steps during that reporting year (e.g. having in place policies and procedures, conducting due diligence and providing training). These measures can take a significant period to implement, especially where they require changes to contractual clauses or supplier relationships. Therefore, in order to avoid having to include a statement that your entity did not implement the specified measure, it is advisable that companies start thinking about these proposed amendments promptly.
Key contacts
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