EU Parliament, Council agree to ban products made from forced labor

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union Council and the European Parliament reached a temporary agreement on Tuesday to ban products made with forced labor from entering the European single market.

The agreement clarifies the different responsibilities of the EU Commission and Member States in identifying companies that exploit forced labor and banning their products.

The deal aims to break the business models of these companies, Belgian Economy and Labor Minister Pierre-Yves Darmagne said in a statement.

“With this regulation we want to ensure that there is no room for their products in our single market, whether they are manufactured in Europe or abroad,” he said. Belgium currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union.

The ban will apply to goods manufactured by forced labor outside the EU and to products manufactured by forced labor in the EU with parts made abroad.

The provisional agreement still needs to be formally approved by the European Parliament and Council to enter into force.

(Reporting by Inti Landauro; Editing by Michael Perry)

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