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<p>The Government welcomes campaigns such as Oxfam’s ‘Behind the Price’ with the supermarket
scorecard that is a part of it and which includes scores for the fair treatment of
women.</p><p> </p><p>The Government recognises the positive competitive environment
which benchmarks of this type help to create, whereby businesses aim to be at the
top of an annual ranking. At the same time, such benchmarks enable consumers, investors,
civil society and regulators to challenge those businesses who could improve, using
this evidence base.</p><p> </p><p>The retail sector recognises it has a responsibility
on these issues and is pioneering responsible sourcing practices. The Government welcomes
industry initiatives in this context such as the British Retail Consortium’s ‘Better
Retail, Better World’. The Government is determined to eliminate exploitation of workers
in the food supply chain in the UK. The Modern Slavery Act 2015 increased specialist
support for victims and it requires businesses to be transparent about their supply
chains. The Government response to the independent review of the legislation will
set out how it intends to strengthen this approach further.</p>
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