Background
This statement is made on behalf of the UK subsidiaries of Solvay S.A. of Belgium (‘Solvay’) for the financial year ending 31 December 2022. This includes: Solvay Interox Limited; (01005238);
This statement is made under the provisions of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (the ‘Act’) and with reference to the guidelines issued from time to time by the Home Office. It sets forth steps taken by Solvay during the financial year to minimise the risk of any slavery or human trafficking, (together, ‘Modern Slavery’) taking place in any part of its business or in any of its supply chains. Modern Slavery encompasses slavery, servitude, human trafficking and forced labour.
Solvay is strongly committed to ethical behaviour, sustainable development and responsible care in order to respond as a corporate citizen to the major challenges facing society and the communities in which Solvay operates.
Our commitment to combatting Modern Slavery
Solvay is committed to acting ethically, and to maintaining a fair and honest business environment for its employees, customers, suppliers and the public in general. This includes a commitment to respecting and supporting human rights with regard to its employees, the communities in which it operates and its business partners as expressed in the internationally recognized standards, many of which are referenced in Solvay’s policies. Solvay operates a number of initiatives to combat Modern Slavery which are further explained below.
The Solvay Code of Business Integrity explains the manner in which Solvay behaves as an organisation and how all employees are expected to act wherever Solvay operates or conducts its business. The Solvay Code of Business Integrity focuses on both integrity and ethics. Solvay’s ‘Ethics and Integrity in Society as a Corporate Citizen’ firmly establishes Solvay’s commitment to respect human rights and to respect internationally recognized human rights standards and conventions, including the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, of which Solvay is a member signatory. The exclusion of child exploitation is explicitly recognized as a human rights standard applicable to Solvay’s operations and in its value chain. Solvay does not tolerate the employment of children or forced labour and will take counter-measures to prevent human and/or sex trafficking. Solvay expects and requires that all of its business partners will respect and support these fundamental principles in the same manner.
As signatory to the Global Framework Agreement with the IndustriALL Global Union, Solvay further commits to safeguard human rights by respecting international social standards as defined by the International Labour Organization, to comply with the principles of the United Nations Global Compact and to respect the OECD’s Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Solvay’s commitment to human rights is also underlined in the Solvay Human Rights in Business Policy which incorporates well-known internationally recognized standards as the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Solvay is committed to creating stable and reliable relationships with its suppliers based on shared values. Solvay has adopted a Supplier Code of Business Integrity which requires the written commitment of its suppliers to follow the Solvay Code of Business Integrity or to abide by their own code of conduct, on the condition that it provides the same guarantees as the Supplier Code of Business Integrity, as Solvay is determined to work only with suppliers who are engaged with similar ethical principles, including those to combat Modern Slavery.
The Solvay Procurement Process underlines Solvay’s expectation of its suppliers and sub-contractors to respect Solvay’s fundamental principles of sustainability. This Solvay Procurement Process also covers rigorous supplier assessments and selection methodology, including corporate social responsibility criteria. As a founding member of the Together for Sustainability (the “TfS”) initiative established by multinational leading chemical companies, Solvay has joined forces to develop and implement a global supplier engagement program that assesses and audits sustainability sourcing practices through an independent process.
Solvay conducts its business with an established approach to corporate social responsibility and sustainability through its Solvay One Planet initiative which is inspired by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Solvay is aligned with the ISO 26000 standard, which, amongst others, includes the elimination of child labour and forced labour as recognized basic human rights and highlights Solvay’s drive for continuous improvement in its corporate social responsibility.
To further improve the efficiency of its compliance management system, Solvay operates a whistleblowing platform called ‘Speak Up’ to allow employees to raise concerns about how colleagues are being treated or practices within the business or supply chain, or any observed or suspected violations of the law or of Solvay’s policies. Such reports are wholly confidential and any employee who makes a report in good faith will be protected from retaliation. Mandatory awareness and training campaigns regarding applicable legal rules and the policies in force in the Solvay Group, including topics such as human rights, are deployed for all employees.
Solvay endeavours to comply with all laws and regulations in effect in the jurisdictions in which it operates and to go beyond legal compliance when needed to meet the high ethical and moral standards reflected in our commitment to combatting modern slavery and human trafficking and in our commitment to corporate social responsibility.
Solvay’s Response to Covid-19
Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, Solvay has had in place dedicated global and country teams responsible for assessing and implementing government measures, recommendations and guidelines to best protect its employees and the local communities where it operates, and to ensure business continuity.
In line with those measures, in the UK Solvay has followed all relevant UK Government requirements and recommendations for the effective management of Covid-19 in the workplace.
Solvay has established rigorous health and safety restrictions. In particular:
- Solvay plants have put in place robust continuity plans, which include health education, hygienic practices and stringent epidemic prevention measures;
- Regular communications are carried out within Solvay to increase awareness and discipline for personal protection;
- Many of Solvay’s sites have doctors and medical advisors who are available to guide Solvay employees and address questions; and
- In the UK Solvay sites have undertaken risk assessments in line with UK government and HSE guidance to ensure the health and safety of employees in the workplace.
Finally, in April 2020 Solvay created the Solvay Solidarity Fund (the “SSF”) to provide additional support, both financial and non-financial, to any employee and dependents who may experience hardship due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2022, the SSF supported numerous projects across different countries such as assisting with ongoing Covid-19 research but also extending its reach to address and aid other hardships such as the Ukraine war. The SSF was able to help Solvay colleagues in Ukraine as well donate to the Belgian Red Cross crisis unit to help strengthen their support activities.
Melvin Dawes
Country Manager UK & Ireland
9 June 2023
Modern Slavery Statement (Print Versions)
The following information is provided for the Solvay UK Group for the year ended 31 December 2022 in compliance with the requirements of paragraph 19(2), Schedule 19 Finance Act 2016. The publication of this tax strategy is regarded as complying with the Group’s duty under paragraph 16(2), Schedule 19 Finance Act 2016.
Tax Governance
Solvay is committed to the highest governance principles and promotes a sustainable culture of long-term value creation. Fulfilment of the Group’s tax obligations is key for the reputation and reliability of Solvay.
Solvay closely follows international tax developments, including international case law, discussions about the taxation of multinational enterprises, and publications by Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other organisations. Solvay’s objective is to be fully compliant with national and international tax legislation, including the Transfer Pricing Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and Tax Administrations issued by the OECD (“OECD Guidelines”)
Solvay’s tax team of skilled tax experts ensure compliance with the group’s policies and procedures. The Tax and Treasury Director reports to the Chief Financial Officer. The Group also takes external advice if and when needed, for example benchmarking analysis to support transfer pricing arrangements.
Relationship with tax authorities
Solvay facilitates an open and positive dialogue with tax authorities. Where appropriate, the group may enter into Advance Pricing Agreements to ensure upfront clarity and eliminate uncertainty about the tax implications of certain potential positions.
Transfer Pricing
In line with the OECD Guidelines, tax laws in all major countries worldwide require that prices of “controlled transactions” (i.e. transactions between related parties) shall be “arms-length”. Accordingly, Solvay has developed Transfer Pricing Policies & Procedures based upon the OECD Guidelines. These Transfer Pricing policies are prepared annually for each Group legal entity that requires such documentation.
Solvay UK operations
Solvay has substantial presence in the United Kingdom, which makes a significant contribution to the UK Exchequer in relation to taxes e.g. tax and national insurance contributions on benefits/expenses, employer national insurance contributions, duties, and taxes collected on behalf of other businesses and employees in respect of VAT, income tax and employee national insurance contributions.
Solvay UK has a team of professionally qualified and experienced employees. The UK entities comply with the Senior Accounting Officer (SAO) requirements. Compliance is further supported by Internal Audit department reviews. The UK legal entities publish externally audited financial statements which reflect the tax position of Solvay’s UK operations.
As part of doing business in the UK, the group has tax losses which originate from operational activities in the past and from contributions to pension funds to reduce pension deficits. As a result, Solvay had no corporate income tax obligations in 2021 and 2022, and is estimating that this will be the same for 2023. UK entities benefit from claiming R&D tax credits and from other tax incentives and exemptions. The attitude of the group towards tax operations so far as affecting UK taxation is to ensure that the group meets its taxation obligations.
The acceptable level of risk in relation to UK taxation is consistent with the group’s tax policies and procedures and its approach to tax. Solvay carries out effective risk management and seeks external tax advice in areas of tax uncertainty or complex matters in order to meet its tax obligations.
Solvay’s UK entities are transparent in their dealings with HMRC, fully cooperate with any enquiries in relation to all taxes and ensure any inadvertent errors are fully disclosed to HMRC as soon as reasonably practicable after being identified.
Solvay is a science company whose technologies bring benefits to many aspects of daily life. Our purpose—we bond people, ideas and elements to reinvent progress—is a call to go beyond, to reinvent future forms of progress and create sustainable shared value for all through the power of science. In a world facing an ever-growing population and quest for resources, we aim to be the driving force triggering the next breakthroughs to enable humanity to advance while protecting the planet we all share.
We bond with customers and partners to address today and tomorrow’s megatrends. As a global leader in Materials, Chemicals and Solutions, Solvay brings advancements in planes, cars, batteries, smart and medical devices, water and air treatment, to solve critical industrial, social and environmental challenges.