A new report published by CORE and ICAR reveals that that a third of companies that have supplied uniforms for UK public sector workers, including the armed forces and prison officers, have not reported on what they are doing to tackle slavery in their supply chains...

We also explored whether companies awarded large contracts between 2013-2016 by the Ministry of Defence (MoD), Ministry of Justice (MoJ), Crown Commercial Services (the central government purchasing unit), and Transport for London (TfL) reveal where their goods are made. Twelve companies provide general information, but none have followed the example of consumer brands like H&M, Primark, and ASOS and published factory names and addresses.

TfL is the only one of the four authorities to have published its own modern slavery statement. In 2016, TfL announced a five-year partnership deal with The Fairtrade Foundation to ethically source cotton for staff uniforms...

Yet despite the UK government’s commitment to tackling modern slavery, neither the MoD nor the MoJ make any reference to responsible procurement on their websites...