In an article published on Thursday 25 June, the business daily Handelsblatt lifts the lid on the broad outlines of a bill being prepared, which would introduce a duty for companies to be vigilant when it comes to social and environmental standards in supply chains (Sorgfaltspflichtengesetz). The bill, the presentation of which has been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic and consequent lockdown, is important as it is intended to serve as a model for similar future European Union legislation that Germany wants to launch during its presidency of the Council of the EU. According to the newspaper, many of the obligations that would have been imposed on companies under the version of the text that was being discussed at the beginning of the year have been scrapped.
A difficult beginning. It has been known for more than a year that Germany, which will hold the presidency of the European Union for six months from 1 July, intends to use this opportunity to spearhead a project that is dear to its heart (see article n°11538). The plan is to draft a law that would introduce a duty of vigilance for companies regarding the respect of social and environmental standards in supply chains. However, the coronavirus crisis forced the two ministers behind the plans – Hu
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