2006

Company Law Reform
1 October 2006

Making business fit for people and planet

The Companies Bill (formerly the Company Law Reform Bill) has just been heard for the last time in the House of Commons.

Thanks to your lobbying the Government has amended the Bill so that publicly listed companies (PLC's) must report on:

This change will help improve the accountability of UK companies, making them more transparent about supply chain issues like palm oil.

This improvement to the Bill follows a huge public campaign involving the Trade Justice Movement and Corporate Responsibility (CORE) Coalition.

The Government has also committed to review, within two years, whether voluntary reporting standards are working.

It will consult with civil society as well as business in assessing whether or not voluntary reporting has resulted in meaningful reports.

If not, the Government will use its powers within the Bill to introduce mandatory reporting standards.

Although we welcome these improvements, much more is still needed to ensure people and the environment are protected from corporate abuses.Â

The Bill still won't ensure UK business always behaves responsibly.

We will continue to campaign to strengthen the environmental and social provisions in the Bill as it enters the House of Lords later this month.