Who made my clothes?

By Stella Creasy MP and Alison McGovern MP

It’s been a long four years in opposition, and each year we’ve seen the country decline further for the lack of a Labour Government. But whether speaking up about legal loan sharks, the misuse of zero hours contracts or promoting the economic case for the living wage, we both believe that there are campaigns worth fighting, even if, from opposition, progress is many times harder, and very much slower.

That’s why we are backing Fashion Revolution Day: on the anniversary of the Bangladesh factory collapse in Rana Plaza when more than 1,100 people were killed, a group of fashion organisations and others are joining together to ask people to get curious and find out where their clothes are made. And why we’d like Labour members and supporters to join us in asking, “who made my clothes?” You can find out all about it at www.fashionrevolution.org

In addition to those who lost their lives, 2,500 were injured last year. They were supplying the clothes that make their way onto our high street and which we wear. Whilst the shock of events last year has led to change in the Bangladesh garment industry, there is much more to do.

Our experience of the past four years has taught us that the Labour movement is not prepared to wait for the next election to act. There are actions which might be individually small, but in concert add up to a serious campaigning force. +Today could be the day when we stand up for garment workers everywhere, and in doing so help the average British consumer know that they are not powerless to ask global brands for transparency about their supply chain.

Last year, more than 100 clothing retailers, including most of Britain’s leading high street brands, signed up to an Accord on fire and building safety in Bangladesh. This introduced statutory safety inspections of garment factories, and funds to help factory owners make their buildings safe to work in. Bangladesh has also seen a sizeable increase in its minimum wage agreed. Yet there are still many people waiting for proper compensation, and the ILO says that, whilst a quarter of Bangladesh’s factories are now safe, that still leaves three quarters not inspected. Clothing companies would like to think that that they have answered the concerns this terrible incident revealed; we want to show that their involvement in these measures were the start- not the end – of a conversation and as consumers and campaigners we are prepared to put our money where our mouth is in asking for further change.

We know if we act collectively as consumers and fashion lovers to tell the brands that they buy that they care about the people who make their clothes we can make progress. It’s a simple action, but one with huge potential. That’s why today on Fashion Revolution Day, we will be asking the brands who make the clothes that millions in Britain wear: who makes our clothes to show we want them to care too. We will also work with our colleague Kezia Dugdale in the Scottish Parliament to raise these concerns, linking up with campaigners across the country and at a local level to highlight this campaign. We know the more ways we ask, and the more of us who ask, the more power we’ll have.

Stella Creasy is the Labour MP for Walthamstow. Alison McGovern is the Labour MP for Wirral South. Photos by Trevor Leighton.