Stop Uyghur Genocide welcomes Parliamentary Committee’s interrogation of Shein supply chains

The committee, which said it had been left with “zero confidence” in the integrity of Shein’s supply chains, questioned a legal advisor for the retailer, solicitor Yinan Zhu, on whether Shein products contain cotton from the Xinjiang region of China.

Ms Zhu also faced questions from the committee about Shein’s view on whether forced Uyghur labour is used in Xinjiang, as well as whether the company’s due diligence process involves checking whether the cotton it uses comes from Xinjiang. 

Ms Zhu, who is the company’s legal advisor for Europe, Middle East and Africa, did not directly answer these questions and would not confirm whether the company uses Chinese cotton. 

The committee commented on Ms Zhu’s reluctance to answer their questions. When she requested to instead write to the committee following the hearing, MP Charlie Maynard accusing her of “obfuscating”.

Campaign group SUG says that evidence it has gathered in a dossier which was provided to the committee and Ms Zhu shows a high likelihood of forced labour in the online fashion seller’s supply chain.

The dossier was sent to Ms Zhu before the hearing by SUG’s lawyers at Leigh Day.

When questioned by the committee on the dossier of evidence, Ms Zhu said she had received it and was considering its contents.

Ending the session, committee chair MP Liam Byrne said:

“Ms Zhu, I have to say for a company that sells £1 billion to UK consumers and for a company which is seeking to float on the London Stock Exchange, the committee has been pretty horrified by the lack of evidence that you have provided today.

“You have given us almost zero confidence in the integrity of your supply chains. You can’t even tell us what your products are made from. You can’t tell us much about the conditions which workers have to work in. And the reluctance to answer basic questions has frankly bordered on contempt of the committee. So I hope we can bring some clarity to the matter as quickly as we can through follow up correspondence.”

In June, SUG launched a legal campaign aiming to stop any attempt by Shein to be listed on the London Stock Exchange.

The campaign group wrote to the Financial Conduct Authority raising concerns with the fashion retailer’s supply chains, which SUG says may be affected by reported forced labour in the Uyghur region of China in Xinjiang.

SUG argues that use of forced labour in supply chains would be unlawful under the Modern Slavery Act and would mean that Shein would have to explain company profits in light of proceeds of crime laws.

Rahima Mahmut, executive director of Stop Uyghur Genocide, said:

“We have strong concerns about the possibility that Shein’s supply chain may be linked to forced labour practices reported in the Uyghur region of China. It is vital that these concerns are fully examined by our institutions, and we are pleased that evidence we provided was used by the select committee in its robust interrogation of Shein.”

Leigh Day solicitor Ricardo Gama, who represents SUG, said:

“We are pleased that evidence from Stop Uyghur Genocide which we provided to the Parliamentary Committee was put to use in the robust questioning of Ms Zhu. Our client argues that the evidence they have compiled shows concerning links in Shein’s supply chains with alleged forced labour in China, which demands further scrutiny. We welcome the committee’s robust questioning of Shein, and concerns raised by its members over the integrity of the company’s supply chains.”

The committee also questioned officials from McDonald’s and Tesco regarding allegations they currently face. More than 700 people have joined a claim led by Leigh Day over the alleged harassment of staff at the fast-food giant, while Tesco faces allegations of forced labour in its clothing supply chain from Burmese migrants in Thailand, also represented by Leigh Day.

You can watch the full committee hearing via this link.