Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a member of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, I've been horrified to read of the evidence presented in this inquiry. I'm horrified that in 2017 there are 45.8 million people living in slavery around the world—almost twice the population of Australia. I'm horrified that human trafficking, forced labour, sexual slavery, child labour and trafficking, domestic servitude, forced marriage, bonded labour, including debt bondage and slavery, are still being inflicted on our fellow human beings in the 21st century.

It is estimated that around two million children, some as young as eight years old—the same age as my youngest son—are being used as child slave labour on cocoa plantations in Africa. These children are living in terrible conditions and given little food, they're not being educated, and they're made to work in the hot sun for long hours with beatings being not uncommon. Some of these children have been abducted or kidnapped before being made to work. These are the children who are producing much of the three million tonnes of chocolate consumed in Australia each year. We cannot sit back and allow this cruelty to continue, not on our watch.

I'm pleased to be a member of this committee that has recommended the government consider supporting the development of a modern slavery act in Australia. But enacting a modern slavery act is only the start. There is already legislation designed to combat modern slavery enacted in the United Kingdom, in France, in Canada and throughout the European Union. Labor has already committed to a modern slavery act, an act that would have penalties for noncompliance. The committee, in its report, gives in-principle support for developing a modern slavery act in Australia, including mandatory supply chain reporting requirements for companies, businesses, organisations and governments.

Two-thirds of the 45.8 million people trapped in slavery or slavery-like conditions are in our neighbourhood, in the Asia-Pacific region. These people are right on our doorstep. Many of these people are enslaved in the global supply chains of companies that provide products and services to Australians every day. The chocolate that we eat is but one example. Exploitation is occurring in industries such as manufacturing, construction and agriculture. Australian companies have acknowledged to the committee that they have found forms of forced labour in their own company supply chains, and these are well-known companies like Fortescue Metals and Wesfarmers.

There was significant support in the inquiry for supply chain reporting from NGOs, charities, religious leaders, unions, legal experts and consumers in particular, but there was also support for supply chain reporting from the Business Council of Australia and the Australian Council of Trade Unions—two groups that don't always agree on things. The ACTU submitted that supply chain reporting is a game-changer in fighting slavery in supply chains. There was widespread support from Australian businesses for legislative measures to address the risk of modern slavery in their supply chains. Businesses in the retail and clothing sector, the food and grocery sector, the mining sector, and the finance and investment sector all acknowledged the need for supply chain reporting.

Not only is modern slavery reprehensible and completely unacceptable in any supply chain, but it is also economically unsound for companies to ignore this issue. The Responsible Investment Association Australasia told the committee that modern slavery in supply chains:

… when poorly managed, may impact negatively on the long-term value of companies …

The committee has given in principle support to key elements of the United Kingdom's model of supply chain reporting, and obviously many of the great Australian companies already operate in the United Kingdom and other jurisdictions that have supply chain reporting requirements. The UK legislation requires annual reporting of steps taken to ensure slavery and human trafficking are not taking place in any part of its business or supply chains. The statements need to be approved by the board of directors and signed off by a director. The committee heard support for the UK model—in particular, the requirement that board-level approval was required. The Australian Food and Grocery Council in support of that model said:

… the real change here will come from elevating this to a board level—

where the board is signing off on the assurances. The committee heard very positive accounts from companies operating in Australia, as I said, who are already required to report under the United Kingdom's legislation, and they can talk to their fellow companies about what the requirements are. The United Kingdom Home Office made a submission to the inquiry and reported that early signs of the impact of the legislation were promising.

I attended a human rights conference in London in January and met with people who are advocates for this. It is certainly popular throughout the Commonwealth and among other nations that were there as part of that Commonwealth human rights gathering. This will roll out to other countries, and not just those in the Commonwealth.

The committee also recommended that the Australian government consider supporting the implementation of an independent antislavery commissioner. When we talk about slavery, we don't think about it happening here, in Australia, in 2017. But, sadly, there are estimated to be around 4,300 people trapped in slavery in Australia, right now—today.

It is often difficult for the victims of modern slavery to get justice. The Josephite Counter-Trafficking Project in their submission to the inquiry said that human traffickers prey on the vulnerable. Often the victims of human trafficking are from poor areas and have low levels of education. The Human Trafficking Resource and Assistance Centre reported to the inquiry that Australia is predominantly a destination country for trafficked women and girls forced into the sex trade and for adults, including men, forced into labour—yet another reason why we need strong unions and a strong government regulator when it comes to our labour market and labour supply.

There are, on average, 25 allegations of trafficking in persons reported to the Australian Federal Police each year. Despite that, the number of convictions is, sadly, very small. Since 2004, there have been only nine convictions of slavery offences, three convictions of sexual servitude offences and one conviction of a people-trafficking offence. The Human Trafficking Resource and Assistance Centre reports that, in several Australian cases involving sexual exploitation, women have been made to work under deprived conditions to pay off fabricated and unlawful debts enforced by the offenders, ranging from $18,000 to $53,000. The victims often have their passports confiscated and are forced to work 12 hours per day, seven days per week, and even when ill.

The introduction of an antislavery commissioner would provide oversight of supply chain reporting, and that is what is considered in the committee's interim report. But the other key role of a commissioner would be in law enforcement and victim support. I note that the committee will be considering the exact role of an Australian independent antislavery commissioner in its final report.

There are lessons to be learnt from the other countries, particularly the United Kingdom. They have had a strong role in this. And I acknowledge the role of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May, who actually had a lead in this when she was a minister. I'd also like to acknowledge another politician, or former politician, and that is former senator Chris Evans from Western Australia, who has been pivotal in working with some of the Western Australian companies in this area and taking a lead on making sure this is rolled out.

It is our responsibility to end modern slavery now. We all have a role to play, whether as consumers, company directors or lawmakers. I'm pleased to support the tabling of this interim report and look forward to the government of Australia leading businesses to embrace the enabling legislation.

Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to take the opportunity to commend the work of the members of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade in their inquiry into establishing a modern slavery act in Australia and also looking at the global supply chains. The broad support of the committee in its interim report for a modern slavery act—including supply chain reporting requirements for companies, businesses, organisations of all kinds and governments—as well as the in-principle commitment to the establishment of an independent antislavery commissioner are really good to see. I'd like to speak about some of these elements even though I haven't been on the committee.

Firstly, though, I'd like to talk about the women I've met who have been slaves. This inquiry has, rightly, been focused on supply chains that businesses operating in Australia use and the relative lack of reporting that we have compared to other nations, like the UK. But, of course, we do have slavery happening here, and I'm very pleased that the committee's looked at that too. I was privileged in my pre-politics life to work with an organisation that helped slaves, and that's where my eyes were opened to just how scarily easy it is for someone to be enslaved. The Salvation Army's Freedom Partnership supports people who were slaves. One woman was working as a housekeeper and child carer. She had no freedom, no rights and no independence; her whole life was ruled by the family. She had no opportunity to contact her own family, yet she was able, through contact with one human being, to escape that situation, and now she's on a path of recovery. Another woman—a young, intelligent woman—had been trafficked by a pimp from Australia across several countries. It was thanks to her evidence that a major joint operation by Australian and US authorities led to the arrest of this man and his jailing in the United States. It's her story to tell and I'm not going to tell it, but what I saw was enormous bravery from both these women to recognise that the situation they were in was not one where they were free. They needed to get out and they had somewhere to turn to for help. The stories are painful and the details are painful, and I was so privileged to be able to help them tell their stories. We need to ensure that an antislavery commissioner is there to help victims like these, the victims of modern slavery, right here in Australia, right now.

This committee report also seeks to address the issues facing women, men and children whose stories we are much less likely to hear, often because they're not in Australia or they're very hidden. It's about how we as consumers unwittingly support their slavery in the decisions that we make. I'm very supportive of an Australian modern slavery act that would require major Australian companies to publicly report on the steps they're taking to tackle slavery in their business or supply chain. It would ensure no Australian company is either directly or indirectly engaged in modern slavery. Members of my community met with me about these issues last month. Libby Sorrell and Yvonne Harrison are part of Stop the Traffik, which is a coalition of organisations and includes the Australian Catholic Religious Against Trafficking in Humans, ACRATH, whom I also met with recently—and I'm sure other members in this place have as well. I want to echo their concerns, some of which are highlighted in this interim report. I also particularly want to note that it's thanks to Libby Sorrell that I became aware of the push to have an act that would prevent and respond to modern slavery in Australia, so I offer my thanks to Libby.

One concern that my constituents have is the threshold at which companies will be required to report. A figure is obviously really difficult to come up with, but I'd urge the committee and the drafters of any subsequent legislation to have a model which considers the level of risk involved. A big business with complete visibility in its supply chain is lower risk than a small or medium business with a supply chain across a number of countries which are high risk and in an industry which is high risk. As the committee's evidence has shown, we know that several of our neighbouring nations are more likely to have people living in slavery. Production in those countries may be considered higher risk. We also know some industries in some places—agriculture, mining and manufacturing—carry higher risk. So I'd urge real thought to be given to the best way to determine who is required to report and who's allowed to have a choice to opt in. I was pleased to see the committee gives in-principle support for lists of at-risk industries, at-risk areas and at-risk groups in Australia and with the Australian supply chains and for those lists to be published by the government.

Another issue that has come up is around the central registry of these documents. The reports on supply chains and antislavery efforts need to be available and accessible. Baptist World Aid, who compile the Ethical Fashion Report, suggest using a standard template that would allow an easy comparison of data. I note that the interim report talks about flexibility in reporting but at the same time recognises that reporting requirements should be clear for businesses and organisations. I know that a number of Australian businesses are already reporting in other countries that they operate in and that they are very comfortable in extending their reporting requirements to Australia.

I want to talk about penalties. It's all very well to have recommended legislation, but I think we need to be looking at penalties. It's really crucial that penalties be part of any modern slavery act. I'm disappointed to see that the committee does not in principle support penalties, as it says they may act as a deterrent to companies investigating the ethics of their supply chain. We should not leave big business to police itself. It doesn't have a great track record of it. Without penalties, any act is toothless and, quite frankly, will be a disappointment to people who've been fighting for this for a very long time.

I want to go back to the recognition in this report that there needs to be an independent antislavery commissioner. I realise that the committee will address this issue in more detail in its final report. The role of the commissioner can include working with companies to assist them in establishing practices to avoid slavery in their supply chains with guidelines and resources. A commissioner can make sure victims are connected to necessary support services, and we already have some of those support services here in Australia. A commissioner could investigate reported slavery, and it can be constantly prompting and advocating on this issue in the way that community members from my electorate have been doing for many years.

In 2015 Australia agreed to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Member states have a target to meet these objectives by 2030. Goal 8.7 is:

Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms

Surely this is not too much to ask. The only way Australian consumers can be aware of the potential connection between the products they consume and human trafficking, forced labour and slavery is if all organisations are required to be transparent about the way their products are sourced or made. The only way we can fulfil our international commitment on this issue is to have really robust legislation and an eagle eye on those supply chains.

There are nearly 50 million people estimated to be living in slavery around the world. Two-thirds are in the Asia-Pacific region, and 4,300 of them are in Australia now. I want to thank the committee members for their hearings and work to date, and I look forward to a final report being a blueprint for Australia to truly tackle modern slavery.

Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's a great pleasure to rise on this occasion to speak to a matter that really goes to the heart of universal human rights. The Australian parliament and Labor's Doc Evatt were instrumental in the formation of the United Nations and the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, so this parliament has both a longstanding attachment to international laws and order and a deep commitment to human rights.

I guess it's been a long time coming, but it gives me great pleasure that this parliament is now turning its attention to the issue of modern slavery. I know that it comes as a shock to many people when you begin this discussion about modern slavery, because for many people their first response is, 'Surely not; this doesn't exist.' But it is, in fact, estimated that there are 45.8 million people trapped in slavery and slavery-like conditions worldwide. That, to our great shame, is more than at any other time in human history. That is a pretty shocking thing to reflect on. Two-thirds of those 45.8 million people trapped in slavery are found in our very own Asia-Pacific region.

So Australia has a very big role to play in this area, and that's why I'm delighted to be standing here in support as a member of both the subcommittee that has drafted this interim report and, indeed, the larger Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade. It has been an inquiry that has enjoyed bipartisan support. There are some points of differences, which I will go to, but there is amongst the committee a very, very deep commitment to seeing an Australian modern slavery act.

In Australia alone, a country assumed to be long rid of this horrible scourge, there are an estimated 4½ thousand people living in slavery—in our own country. These people tend to be men, women and children trapped in forced labour, sex traffic and debt bondage, living lives of unimaginable trauma, often under the control of criminal organisations. And yet, whilst we know this is going on, there is a real lack of public recognition of modern slavery by most Australians. They are unaware that this slavery still exists, not only internationally but in our own backyards.

The time has come to acknowledge that slavery is not just a historic concept; it is, tragically, hidden but a very real part of our society. The time has come also to take action to fix the significant gaps in the Commonwealth's response to the problem of slavery. We need an Australian modern slavery act to improve transparency within business supply chains and to help break the chains of modern slavery in Australia.

Labor have long supported going down this path and indeed announced a policy, many months ago now, that we would in fact introduce an Australian modern slavery act, that that act would include supply-chain reporting requirements for major Australian companies and that it would establish an independent antislavery commissioner. Both recommendations, I'm pleased to say, are strongly supported by this interim report.

Labor, I am proud to say, has absolutely led the way on this issue. Earlier this year, Bill Shorten and Labor committed to a modern slavery act with penalties for noncompliance and, as I said, an independent antislavery commissioner. This response will ensure that Australia is at the forefront of the fight against modern slavery and will create the infrastructure necessary to make a real difference in combating this problem.

The Turnbull government have recently followed Labor's lead and committed similarly to a modern slavery act, and that's to be commended. Regrettably, they have so far failed to commit to the penalties for noncompliance or to the establishment of this fully independent antislavery commissioner, although I am hopeful that on both these fronts there is room for the committee to do further investigation. Both are crucial recommendations to ensure that the modern slavery act that we arrive at here in Australia is in fact an improvement on those existing elsewhere.

While Labor have acknowledged that the government's agreement in some parts is a great step in the right direction, we would say it just doesn't go far enough. The government really need to strengthen their resolve on this issue and commit to powerful penalties for those who propagate slavery and to back in the independent antislavery commissioner. Slavery is a cruel and barbaric practice. The fact that the government have yet to commit to imposing penalties on those big businesses that breach the modern slavery act is not acceptable, in my view. The need for penalties is reflected in the interim report, so the committee is very alive to this issue. We have indeed recommended—there's further discussion there—that penalties and compliance measures would in fact aid the enforcement of the act. That is why Labor supports a modern slavery act with these penalties and non-compliance measures. That's what gives the act the teeth it needs to actually operate effectively and to really make inroads into what we all agree is an utterly barbaric practice.

Labor will enforce supply chain reporting requirements for all businesses—that is the commitment we have made—ensuring no Australian company is directly or indirectly engaged in modern slavery. Major Australian companies would be required to comply with that. These companies would be required to report to government annually on the steps they have taken to ensure modern slavery is not occurring in their businesses or indeed anywhere in their supply chains. They would do so through making a slavery and human trafficking statement. There really is no alternative. We've had discussions with a number of other international jurisdictions here. It seems that the issue of compliance is critical to the successful abolition of practices both domestically and also further down the supply chain, to ensuring that we stamp out modern slavery. Baptist World Aid has suggested that currently 31 per cent of companies know that more than 75 per cent of their input suppliers have had issues around being involved in some of those antislavery practices.

We face a once-in-a-generation opportunity to partner with business to help stamp out this abhorrent practice with legislation that will actually make a difference. An Australian modern slavery act must have an effective compliance regime. That's the argument I've made here and that I'll continue to press in our committee deliberations. There is no hope unless we as a society take strong action—not action that will simply have an impact limited to Australia but action that will help people held in slavery and slavery-like conditions elsewhere. That's why Labor has long committed to an anti-slavery commissioner to ensure that there is help for victims of modern slavery right here in Australia and to fight slavery both here and overseas. We call on the government to now commit to doing the same. The hidden nature of modern slavery makes it very difficult for authorities to detect, investigate and prosecute incidents when they do occur, so you need every tool in your kit in order to stamp out these abhorrent practices when you have the opportunity.

I commend this interim report to the House. I think there is more work to be done, but it's an absolutely terrific start.

Debate adjourned.

Federation Chamber adjourned at 16:29