New modern slavery offence a step forward, but Australia still hasn't built the road
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
QUICK QUOTES
"We asked the government for a new road. What we got is a promise of a fence at the top of the cliff, and the same old, inadequate ambulance service waiting at the bottom for the people who fall through the gaps." — Carolyn Kitto OAM, Co-Director, Be Slavery Free
"Credit where it's due. This is real progress, and for once we've overtaken the UK on this. But congratulations shouldn't stop us asking the obvious question: what exactly is a 'reasonable step,' and how high does the fence actually have to be? Without that detail, we can't tell if this will hold, or if people will fall straight through it, same as before." — Carolyn Kitto OAM, Co-Director, Be Slavery Free
"The Government wants to consult before finalising any of this. Fair enough. But consultation takes time, and slavery doesn't pause while it happens. We wonder how many more people fall over the cliff before this is actually enacted." — Fuzz Kitto, Co-Director, Be Slavery Free
MEDIA STATEMENT
Be Slavery Free
16 July 2026
New modern slavery offence a step forward, but Australia still hasn't built the road
Be Slavery Free has welcomed the Albanese Government's announcement of a new criminal offence and civil penalties for large companies that fail to prevent modern slavery in their supply chains, while warning that the reform, as described, still leaves the systemic change Australia needs undelivered.
"We asked the government for a new road. What we got is a promise of a fence at the top of the cliff, and the same old, inadequate ambulance service waiting at the bottom for the people who fall through the gaps," said Carolyn Kitto OAM, Co-Director of Be Slavery Free.
Attorney-General the Hon Michelle Rowland MP announced on Wednesday that companies with annual revenue over $100 million will face a new criminal offence, plus civil penalties, if they fail to prevent modern slavery in their supply chains. A defence will be available to companies that can show they took "reasonable steps." Remedies for victims are, so far, only something the Government says it will consider during consultation, not a funded commitment.
"The Government wants to consult before finalising any of this," said Fuzz Kitto, Co-Director of Be Slavery Free. "Fair enough. But consultation takes time, and slavery doesn't pause while it happens. We wonder how many more people fall over the cliff before this is actually enacted."
On this measure, Australia now sits ahead of the United Kingdom. A House of Lords committee recommended mandatory human rights due diligence laws, backed by legal consequences, in 2024, and the UK government still hasn't legislated them.
"Credit where it's due. This is real progress, and for once we've overtaken the UK on this," said Carolyn Kitto. "But congratulations shouldn't stop us asking the obvious question: what exactly is a 'reasonable step,' and how high does the fence actually have to be? Without that detail, we can't tell if this will hold, or if people will fall straight through it, same as before."
The scale of the problem hasn't changed. An estimated 50 million people live in modern slavery worldwide, according to the Global Slavery Index cited in the Government's own announcement. In Australia, close to $1 in every $5 spent on imports, nearly $100 billion a year, carries a heightened risk of modern slavery.
Be Slavery Free says those numbers call for systemic change: mandatory due diligence with real penalties, a ban on the importation of goods made with forced, child or prison labour, and proper resourcing for enforcement, not a single new offence applying only to the largest companies.
Be Slavery Free is calling on the Government to:
Publish the detailed standard for "reasonable steps" during consultation, before legislation is finalised
Fully resource enforcement so the offence and civil penalties are not symbolic
Properly fund remedy and support services for victims and survivors, instead of just promising to consider them
Modern slavery is not shrinking. Real reform means fully specifying and funding this offence, not just announcing it.
Write to your MP: beslaveryfree.com/2026-email-your-mp
ENDS
Media contact:
Be Slavery Free
Fuzz Kitto, fuzz.kitto@beslaveryfree.com, 0407 931 115
Carolyn Kitto, carolyn.kitto@beslaveryfree.com, 0438 040 959