Speeches by Smith.

“Q I am sure you are aware that the independent Regulatory Policy Committee has found the impact assessments on the Bill to be, in its words, “not fit for purpose”. Are you concerned that the impacts of the Bill on your members, or indeed on the wider economy, have not been properly assessed?”

“Q There has been a lot in the media, and I have seen this in my constituency, about workers in retail and convenience stores facing unacceptable abuse. Shoplifting is particularly problematic in many places at the moment. Do you think that some measures in the Bill will add to the difficulties in recruiting to the sect…”

“Please do. Helen Dickinson: A reference period is conceptually a good idea—the question is whether it is too short. I know that some people who appeared in front of the Committee earlier this week suggested that it should be slightly longer. I think requiring a business to offer the hours of that reference period in ev…”

“Q Thank you. Helen Dickinson? Helen Dickinson: Thank you very much for this opportunity. We are probably going to end up violently agreeing with each other, but let us see how we go. There is real alignment on the objectives of the Bill: to improve working practices, have the right culture between employees and busines…”

“Q What would be the ideal probationary period? Claire Costello: I think it is more about the fact that the Bill will drive more tribunals if people feel that they have a route to do that, so that might make people a bit reticent. There is also the timescale. We have a three-month probationary period, so nine months is …”

“Q So you do not think that there is any part of the Bill that is deficient, and that your union would rather see strengthened or modified in any way. Mike Clancy: The key thing we would like to see is that access to workplaces is not confined to physical premises, but is also digital. That applies where union recogniti…”

“Q91 Good morning to the witnesses. This quite far-reaching Bill will have a significant impact on your direct employees and the employees of the businesses you represent. We heard evidence in previous sessions that some of the Bill’s measures will make many businesses more reticent to take on new employees, and certain…”

“Q What does that look like? Mike Clancy: It probably looks like ensuring that the best practice from employers now—who allow us access to their intranet and to electronic and digital means, in terms of their staff—becomes the norm, and that it complies with data protection. That happens in workplaces up and down the co…”

“Q This is a question to all of you, off the back of the last answer. It was suggested during the last evidence session that this Bill does not go far enough. It is evident from the declarations made at the start of the sitting that the relationship between the trade union movement and the Labour party is symbiotic, so …”

“Q I have a final question on the upskilling of professionals, which Cathryn just mentioned, so that they can advise on the new measures coming in through both the Bill and the secondary legislation that will follow. What would be the cost burden and the impact on the whole sector to get into a position where it can giv…”

“Q What is enough time? Ben Willmott: We understand that the changes to the unfair dismissal regime in any new initial or statutory probation period will not come in until autumn 2026 at the earliest—that is the sort of timeframe you need to be thinking about. The other thing is that, because of all the other measures, …”

“Q Good morning to the witnesses. This is clearly a very large piece of legislation. Previous witnesses have said that perhaps it should be broken up. Do your organisations and those you represent think that it should be broken up? Is it too complicated? Is it putting too much on HR advisers, for example, in one swoop? …”

“Q Clearly, this is quite a thick Bill; it has lots of measures in it. If you were able to change any element of it, what would be your top priority? David Hale: There seems to be a big question about whether the Bill should be split up. It is a very large Bill. Overwhelm is the primary response. The second response is,…”

“Mr Hale, do you have a view on that perspective? David Hale: If the Government had a good process for the Bill, which I do not think they do, we would be exploring what the participation harm is. Part of that is not just whether firms choose to recruit, but who they choose to recruit. On the whether, from a small-busin…”

“Q Sticking on that theme of flexibility, particularly from the start-up perspective, and thinking back to the post-2010, pre-pandemic period, a huge proportion of economic growth and the success of economic growth in that period was down to the growth in self-employment and people making that leap to set up their own b…”

“Q Good morning, gentlemen. In the last session, we heard evidence that this Bill could have a £5 billion-a-year impact, disproportionately impacting SMEs. Is that something that you both recognise as a risk of this legislation? David Hale: The impact assessment was quite clear that the bill would be more than £5 billio…”

“Q I want to come back on this point, as it goes to the nub of any change to employment law. This does not mean that I am against employment law—I want to make that clear before anyone suggests otherwise. Alex, you mentioned the net impact of this legislation on the number of people in the United Kingdom in employment a…”

“Q Thank you, Mr Stringer, and good morning, witnesses. I always like to get down to the nitty gritty and the nuts and bolts of any legislation in front of us. This is quite a weighty Bill that makes significant changes to employment law. What do the organisations that you represent fear most in it? Jane Gratton: Let me…”

“Q Do you have a view on how it would be best to structure change around specific single projects like the building of a railway station, which might take two, three or four years and then that is it; there is a cliff edge and the project is over? How would you best structure that? Alasdair Reisner: It is an interesting…”

“Q Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us for this session late in the day. The Bill is multifaceted. It has a lot of measures in it. It could rapidly become a Christmas tree Bill. What do those you represent see as the good elements of it? More significantly, what are the areas that perhaps need amendment or chan…”