It is pretty clear that if we are to change society for the better and to tackle the climate emergency we need to challenge much more radically what it means to be a business, writes Lucy Findlay MBE, founding Managing Director of Social Enterprise Mark CIC, the international social enterprise accreditation authority.

Political parties contesting the election UK General Election (to be held on 12 December 2019) recently released manifestos or priorities detailing their policy commitments. We examined what each had to say on holding businesses accountable for their impacts on human rights and the environment.

In April this year, 25 civil society organisations launched a campaign for a new law to make UK companies more accountable for human rights abuses and environmental abuses in their global operations and supply chains. The good news is that there is growing momentum worldwide for similar legislation.

Mandatory human rights due diligence and corporate liability developments in Europe. Credit: European Coalition for Corporate Justice (ECCJ).

Laws to regulate companies’ behaviour are desperately needed – but at the current time, the UK falls short. We explain why the UK needs to move beyond the Modern Slavery Act and also introduce a law that makes companies act to prevent human rights and environmental abuses.

Around the world, citizens are mobilizing for action to stop climate change and corporate activities damaging our shared environment, health and future.  International rules are needed to address the harm that global businesses and value chains can cause, and to address insufficient regulation by national governments.

For the last few days, the members of the most exclusive club in the world, the G7, have been meeting by the seaside. Supposedly, top of the agenda was fighting inequality – but research concludes that the policies G7 members are pursuing are making it a whole lot worse, writes Alex Maitland of Oxfam.

UK parent companies’ legal liability for human rights abuses and environmental damage overseas has been a high-profile topic throughout 2019. This week the UK Supreme Court gave its decisions on Nigerian and Kenyan communities’ requests to appeal in their claims against Shell and Unilever.

Zambia, Barotse Floodplain – November 2012. Photograph by Felix Clay.

In a historic ruling, the UK Supreme Court has allowed 1,826 Zambian villagers to continue to pursue their case (Lungowe v. Vedanta) against UK-based mining giant Vedanta in the UK courts. This blog, by CORE’s Policy and Communications Officer, Louise Eldridge, explores the implications of the ruling. It was originally posted by Africa is a Country.

Several political processes currently underway in the UK offer civil society space to push the Government on mandatory human rights due diligence (mHRDD), writes Marilyn Croser, CORE’s Director. This blog was originally published by the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre.

CORE and 15 other NGOs, unions, investors and multi-stakeholder organisations have signed a statement asking the Government to take tough action to ensure companies make serious efforts to eradicate modern slavery from their supply chains.