Britain’s state-owned energy company will not be allowed to use solar panels linked to Chinese slave labour, under changes to government plans.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband will introduce an amendment to legislation to ensure there is no slavery in GB Energy’s supply chains.
It comes after ministers rejected an amendment to a bill last month that would have prevented GB Energy spending money on solar panels where supply chains had “credible evidence of modern slavery”.
The production of solar panels in China’s Xinjiang region has been linked to the alleged exploitation of Uyghur Muslims.
China has dominated the renewables market and produces much of the world’s supply of polysilicon, a key component in solar panels.
It is a dilemma for the UK, which imports a large portion of its solar panels from China.
Dozens of Labour MPs abstained in a vote on the amendment which was put forward by crossbench peer Lord Alton when the Great British Energy Bill was in the House of Lords.
A government source told the BBC since then “there has been an acknowledgement of the argument that GB Energy should be an industry leader”.
The text of the new amendment has not yet been published but the change will single out GB Energy’s objectives and ensure slavery and human trafficking are not taking place in supply chains it uses.
Labour MPs who have been calling for the change are seeing it as a victory.
Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the former Conservative leader who has long campaigned for a tougher UK stance on China, said the government would have faced a large rebellion if it hadn’t introduced this change.
“I hope and believe they are now seeing sense and realise it is a terrible situation to allow products that have been produced by slave labour,” he told the BBC.
In 2023, the BBC reported that the British Army was using solar panels made by companies claimed to have a “very high” exposure to forced labour in China.
Luke de Pulford, the executive director of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (Ipac), told the BBC “there’s a problem right the way throughout the renewables sector with state-imposed forced labour in China”.
Asked how difficult it would be for the government to increase its use of renewables without buying solar panels from Chinese companies potentially exposed to slave labour, Mr de Pulford said: “It’s going to require a transition because China has such a dominance of the production of polysilicon and nearly 40% of that comes from Xinjiang and is connected in some way to these labour transfer schemes, so we’re going to have to diversify.”
Government sources denied the change would have an impact on the government’s net zero ambitions, insisting there was capacity in the solar panel supply chains.
A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said: “No industry in the UK should rely on forced labour, and through Great British Energy we have a clear plan to build the supply chains needed to support a new era of clean homegrown power, bringing jobs and investment.
“We are working across government to tackle the issue of forced labour in solar supply chains, and the relaunched Solar Taskforce is focusing on developing supply chains that are resilient, sustainable and free from forced labour.
“Having listened carefully to the views of MPs and peers, we are considering how we can go further to help ensure Great British Energy is a sector leader in this area and will provide an update shortly.”
