Fiona Bruce – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2014-06-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent UK companies profiting from North Korean labour; and what steps he is taking to ensure that UK companies are compliant with international law on human trafficking, slavery and forced labour in their contracts in North Korea.

Mr Hugo Swire

The UK is the first country to publish the Implementation Plan of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which states the Government’s expectation of business behaviour both in the UK and overseas. In October 2013, the Department for Business Innovation and Skills amended the Companies Act 2006 to introduce mandatory reporting requirements for all UK listed companies to publish information on human rights issues. At the EU level, the UK in April this year secured agreement to impose further reporting requirements on companies across Europe. In particular, all large listed and public interest undertakings will be required to disclose policies, outcomes and risks relating to areas such as respect for human rights and, if relevant, linked to their supply and subcontracting chain.

Current trade between the UK and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is minimal and covered by an overarching provision that any activities should satisfy existing UN and EU sanctions. These refer to restriction in the export of goods and financial assistance, which may contribute to the development of the DPRK’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes. There are currently no plans to introduce a general restriction on trade, as such a broad measure could adversely affect ordinary North Koreans.