NSW Modern Slavery Act update: key findings from Report 56

The New South Wales Modern Slavery Act 2018 (NSW Act) was the first to be passed in Australia. With a threshold comparable to the UK Modern Slavery Act, significant penalties for failing to report and a focus on victim support, it was considered one of the most progressive pieces of anti-slavery legislation in the world.

But just six months later, the passing of the Commonwealth Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Commonwealth Act) threw the progressive NSW Act into doubt. There was widespread concern regarding inconsistencies between the two pieces of legislation, particularly in respect of the supply chain transparency obligations and, consequently, the NSW Act was returned to the NSW Legislative Council's Standing Committee on Social Issues' (Committee) for review.