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The London Stock Exchange (LSE) has been asked what checks are successful spot to vet firms aft fast-fashion retailer Shein refused to reply "basic questions" implicit its proviso chain.
Liam Byrne, seat of the Business and Trade Committee, wrote to Dame Julia Hoggett asking if the banal marketplace had tests successful spot to "authenticate statements" by firms seeking to list, "with peculiar respect to their safeguards against the usage of forced labour successful their products".
It comes aft MPs branded the grounds of a Shein lawyer "ridiculous" erstwhile she refused to accidental if the institution sold products containing fabric from China.
Byrne told Dame Julia that MPs were "profoundly acrophobic astatine the deficiency of candid and unfastened answers".
"The committee would similar to gully your attraction to the concerning grounds we heard," helium said successful a missive to the LSE main enforcement connected Friday.
The BBC understands Shein, founded successful China but present headquartered successful Singapore, has filed archetypal paperwork to database successful the UK, which could worth it astatine £50bn. It follows the retailers accelerated emergence to 1 of the biggest accelerated manner firms globally, shipping to customers successful 150 countries.
But questions stay implicit the company's proviso concatenation amid allegations of forced labour and quality rights abuses.
During an quality successful beforehand of the Commons' Business and Trade Committee connected Tuesday, a elder lawyer representing Shein, Yinan Zhu, repeatedly refused to accidental whether the institution sold products containing fabric from the Xinjiang portion - an country successful which China has been accused of subjecting Uyghur Muslims to forced labour. Shein has denied the claims.
Ms Zhu declined to reply and asked if she could constitute to the committee pursuing the hearing.
Her repeated refusal to reply questions astir proviso chains and a imaginable UK listing, was met with backlash from the committee of MPs, who accused her of "wilful ignorance".
She told MPs that the Shein does not ain immoderate factories oregon manufacturing facilities, but works with a ample web of suppliers, mostly successful China, but besides successful Turkey and Brazil.
She added that the steadfast complied with "laws and regulations successful the countries we run in".
China has been accused of subjecting members of the Uighur, a chiefly Muslim taste minority, to forced labour. In December 2020, research seen by the BBC showed that up to fractional a cardinal radical were being forced to prime fabric successful Xinjiang, but Beijing has denied immoderate rights abuses.
The allegations person led to immoderate large manner brands, including H&M, Nike, Burberry and Adidas, removing products utilizing Xinjiang cotton, which has led to a backlash successful China, and boycotts of the companies.
In his missive to the LSE, Byrne, a Labour MP, said: "The committee was profoundly acrophobic astatine the deficiency of candid and unfastened answers to immoderate highly simple, basal questions astir the integrity of Shein's proviso chain.
"In the airy of this I would beryllium grateful if you would fto maine cognize what checks, if any, the London Stock Exchange has successful spot to authenticate statements by firms seeking to list, with peculiar respect to their safeguards against the usage of forced labour successful their products."
Byrne also wrote to the brag of the Financial Conduct Authority, Nikhil Rathi, to inquire what checks the watchdog itself has successful spot to guarantee UK-listed companies disclose "legal risks".
Shein has been contacted for remark pursuing the letters.
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