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National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights

Australian companies should respect human rights wherever they operate and be held accountable if they fail to do so.

While corporations have the capacity to contribute to economic growth, poverty alleviation and human development, they can also harm the human rights of individuals and communities. The challenge for governments, business and civil society is to ensure that the power and influence wielded by corporations does not lead to human rights violations and that when violations do occur, victims are able to access a remedy.

These principles were developed in consultation with key stakeholders and adopted unanimously by the Human Rights Council in 2011. They provide a single, coherent set of standards addressing the respective responsibilities of states and corporations with regard to business impacts on human rights. The Guiding Principles set out concrete and practical steps to ensure that the state protects those within its jurisdiction from corporate human rights violations, companies respect human rights and victims of human rights violations are able to access remedies.