Speeches by Wheeler.

“Well, I agree on my newness, and maybe as I gain more experience, I will encounter more ridiculousness in this place than I already have—in fact, I am sure I will. I wish to speak to the amendment, despite its probing nature. In my view, and I hope the Minister would agree, the clause is designed to promote stability a…”

“I appreciate that the shadow Minister has said that it is a probing amendment. I wish it was not quite so ridiculous, in all honesty—it is an utter low ball—but I will speak to it and to the clause it seeks to amend.”

“The shadow Minister invited clarification and an intervention. I do not think that anyone is disputing some of what he says, though we will dispute much. In the context of the Bill, he talks much about, as he put it, the mounting burden, but with little evidence—though he seems to quite like evidence when referencing t…”

“I refer the Committee to my declaration in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests and my trade union memberships. When the shadow Minister listed the groups upon whom growth depends, he seemed to miss a rather large group—the workers. Does he accept that the purpose of the Bill is to create good employment and va…”

“Will the hon. Member give way?”

“It is a quick intervention: I am just wondering whether the amendment’s reference to 18 months is another example of the ridiculousness that we were talking about.”

“I would not agree, which will not surprise the hon. Member. I gently suggest that the number of Government amendments will possibly provide the clarity that he asks for—they will be baked in, and will provide that clarity. This is part of the process of getting the provisions right for all involved. I would suggest tha…”

“Does the shadow Minister accept that it is not the fault of the worker either? In fact, the employer has more control over the situation, on balance. On his example of planning out work, especially bookings, employers would know that there were no bookings further in advance than on the day—there are comparable example…”

“Q Picking up from the last question, we have heard how the Bill will benefit employers; what other groups of people in the country do you think it will benefit? Justin Madders: There are an awful lot of people who will benefit if we get this right. I am talking about people who do not know from one week to the next how…”

“Q Michael, let me ask you the same question: given that the purpose of the Bill is to promote good-quality employment, what are the specific measures in it that you think do not contribute to that aim? Michael Lorimer: It goes back to what Luke said about a lot of this day one stuff. I do not want to paint a picture th…”

“Q Thank you to the panel for your evidence so far. I will just circle back to guaranteed hours. Although I appreciate that flexibility is of value in the sector, if the hours are there in the business and regularly being worked, would you not agree that that demonstrates there is a need for those hours in the business …”

“Q As the Minister says, we have heard from businesses and their representative groups, which have said that good employers have nothing to fear from the measures in the Bill; in fact, they welcome the level playing field to prevent undercutting. Given that the purpose of the Bill is to promote good-quality employment, …”

“Q This is a question particularly for Mr Prendergast. What do you think will be the impact of reinstating the school support staff negotiating body—a measure that your union has long called for—on your members in schools? Andy Prendergast: When you look at the school support staff negotiating body, this is something th…”

“Q So far, we have heard an awful lot about flexibility and risk, from you and from previous panels. Would the panel accept that, currently, flexibility is too far in favour of the employer, that the risk is borne by the employee and that this Bill seeks to rebalance that? In which areas do you believe that the measures…”

“Q This question is primarily for Allen and UKHospitality. How big of a challenge is retention in the hospitality sector? Do you agree with the Nationwide Caterers Association that one benefit of the measures in the Bill around guaranteed hours will be reduced staff turnover? Allen Simpson: Turnover is higher in hospita…”

“I also refer to my declaration in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, and my membership of the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers and GMB.”

“Q I want to drill down into something Ben talked about earlier: how can the Bill best meet its aims while supporting smaller businesses that might not have dedicated HR support? Carly, the Happy Business School describes itself as being “on a mission to help organisations build people-centric workplace cultures, where …”

“I refer to my declaration in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests and my membership of the GMB and USDAW.”

“Q I am sure the Minister will agree that we have heard some illuminating evidence today from excellent panellists. I am wondering what he sees as the key takeaways for the Bill. Matthew Pennycook: I welcome that question; it is an open one, and I will have to think on my feet in my response. I think a number of the deb…”

“Q Thank you, Sir Christopher. I appreciate that Suzannah was asking to come in, and my question is actually for her, so this might give her an opportunity to respond. It is a slightly broad question: what concerns might housing associations have around the Bill? Could any aspects of it be constructively improved to add…”