Minister Seamus O'Regan moved today to tighten the noose on what he called "modern slavery" by supporting a bill that ensures Canadian companies do not use forced labor or exploit children. O'Regan is providing government support for a private member's bill that requires Canadian companies and government departments to examine supply chains in order to protect workers.

O'Regan says the Liberals are not only voting to support the bill but want it to go to a committee where they can further strengthen it through government amendments.

The bill, introduced by Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne, will require Canadian companies to verify that none of their products or components are manufactured in workshops that use children or people who are forced to work long hours for free or for a meager wage.

The senator warned that products including coffee, cocoa, and sugarcane may be linked to child labor or made in factories in Xinjiang, China, where members of the Uyghur community are forced to work.

The anti-slavery ban bill was unanimously supported in the second reading in the House of Commons by the Conservatives, the New Democratic Party, the Greens, and the Bloc Québécois, and will now move to the foreign affairs committee, another parliamentary stage before becoming law.