Moves to ban exploitative unpaid internships move closer
Ministers launched a call for evidence into the practice, saying it formed part of its plans for the biggest upgrade in workers' rights in a generation.
The Government said internships offered young people invaluable experience as they build their careers, but added that when they were unpaid or paid below the national minimum wage, they created barriers to equal opportunity based on where people live, how old they are, or their social background.
Unpaid internships are already largely banned under current law, when they are not part of an educational or training course, but ministers said wanted to strengthening protections by gathering more evidence on how unpaid internships affect young people, and how businesses use them to assess candidates.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: 'Every young person deserves the chance to build their career through quality work experience, but good employers are still being undercut by those exploiting interns by illegally asking them to work for free.
'Our Plan for Change seeks to break down barriers to opportunity, which is why we will strengthen protections for younger workers so that internships are accessible to everyone, ensuring they have the foundations to build a strong and successful career.'
Employment Rights Minister Justin Madders said: ' Internships provide a strong platform from which to build a career, allowing young people to learn new skills and giving employers a pipeline of future talent to hire from to grow their business.
'Employers should not be taking advantage of the opportunities on offer by not paying their interns.
'This move will help us crack down on those not following the rules, so that the next generation of interns are able to gain that crucial experience whilst earning a fair wage.'
Nick Harrison, chief executive of the Sutton Trust, said: 'Taking action on internships with low or no pay is absolutely the right thing to do.
'We've found that 61% of internships undertaken by recent graduates were unpaid or underpaid, effectively excluding those who can't rely on financial support from family.
'Employers will benefit from the wider pool of talent available to them, and three quarters of employers told us a ban wouldn't impact the number of opportunities they provide.
'Today's announcement marks a significant step in the right direction.'
The call for evidence will run for 12 weeks.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
17 minutes ago
- Telegraph
What does it mean to be an ‘authentic conservative'? Three writers give their view
Kemi Badenoch has urged Conservative MPs to'take an authentically conservative position'. What does that mean? Paul Goodman recently wrote in our pages on how he interprets the phrase. We have now asked three more Conservative politicians (who also happen to be conservative thinkers) to write on how they interpret it. Bill Cash was Chair of the European Scrutiny Committee between 2010 and 2024 and Shadow Attorney General between 2001 and 2003; Jesse Norman is shadow Leader of the House and a biographer of Edmund Burke and Adam Smith; Neil O'Brien is shadow minister for policy renewal and development. Bill Cash: it is about affirming our democratic sovereignty The Conservative Party's authenticity comes from values and principles that serve the national interest. This has been the case since Edmund Burke. Reform, with their misleading claims and no solutions, has gained some traction on us. But all is not lost. Our beliefs have sustained us for 250 years: when Robert Peel resigned in the national interest because his party in Parliament would not repeal the Corn Laws, his nemesis Benjamin Disraeli ultimately agreed and stated: 'The Tory Party is a national party or it is nothing.' Disraeli then came to accept John Bright's campaign and a successful extension of the franchise for modern democracy in 1867. Winston Churchill preferred 'country first, constituency second, party third.' Margaret Thatcher in 1975 replaced Heath and, later, at the Bruges speech in 1988, paved the way for our restoration of democratic self-government on the European issue. This was despite opposition from within her Cabinet. Boris Johnson ensured Brexit and removed the whip from 27 Remainers in the Party in 2019 who sided with Labour. Authentic Conservatism thus includes rejecting subjugation to European Union laws and jurisdiction, and promotes the Brexit freedoms by self-government and prosperity through small businesses and deregulation, lower taxation, property ownership and inheritance, family values, free speech, proportional fairness not wokery, defence with Nato and the full restoration of the Union itself, including Northern Ireland and border control. It includes overcoming the catastrophes of net and illegal migration. This means leaving the ECHR, with clear and unambiguous Acts of Parliament to override international law on the Supreme Court's own principle of legality. The Conservative Party must now decisively insist on being united in getting this principle right and repudiating Keir Starmer's EU/UK reset with its dynamic alignment which undermines the authentic Conservative insistence on democratic sovereignty. Jesse Norman: it is about practical solutions that serve Britain Conservatism in Britain has never been a slogan or a cult of personality. It is a tradition arising from our history, our Parliament and our constitution. At its best, conservatism distrusts ideology and its easy certainties, let alone the rootless and corrosive flattery of populism. Real conservatism is practical. It knows that our liberties and prosperity come from hard work, and the long grind of political reform. It respects the grain of this country: our armed forces, schools and, yes, universities; the Church, the charities and local councils that knit communities together. It insists that the Government should help people to take responsibility for their lives, not grab powers to itself. As a political party, the Conservatives have been repeatedly attacked for their record after 2010. But in many places the story is a notable one and worthy of robust defence: the long, slow recovery from the global financial crisis to which Labour had left this country so exposed; massively effective schools reform; the gradual introduction of universal credit, which performed brilliantly during the pandemic; our immediate and resolute support for Ukraine after it was invaded by Russia in 2022. Why did these initiatives succeed? Because they were inspired by core conservative principles of fiscal prudence, the desire to reform public services and the defence of Europe. But Conservatives should also accept that some decisions after 2010 were not conservative. Interventions in Libya and Syria were marked more by speed than prudence. Major projects such as HS2 were launched without the care and scrutiny they demanded. Net zero was agreed after one short Commons debate. Inadequate steps were taken to curb legal and illegal migration. A succession of referendums unsettled our constitutional balance and exposed deep national divisions. The lesson is clear. Conservatism works when it is steady, serious, and focused on practical solutions that reflect its core belief in preserving what is best in British society. Neil O'Brien: it is about accountability Conservatives believe in accountability. Since the Blair era we have seen far too much power handed to law courts, quangos and international bodies that aren't accountable to the British public. Power without accountability means bad decisions. This has created a topsy-turvy, two-tier Britain: the rights of prolific criminals, illegal immigrants and benefit claimants are prioritised over the rights of the law-abiding and hard-working. Rule by lawyers also explains why we can't cut welfare spending or build the infrastructure we need to grow. We also believe in order. The first duty of the Government is to keep citizens safe. That means a return to no-nonsense policing. We should be focused on catching criminals, not policing what people say or think. And it means ending endless community sentences and slaps on the wrist for serious crimes. Conservatives know that a disorderly environment breeds anti-social behaviour and crime. Yet under Labour our capital stinks of weed, tube trains are covered in graffiti and petty crimes like fare dodging are becoming normalised. Conservatives believe in the nation. We took back control from the EU. We must now drastically cut immigration. As Kemi Badenoch says: the country must be 'a home, not a hotel'. We can't have a strong, united nation with a transient and constantly churning population. We also believe in the family and individual responsibility. Fairness means people getting what they deserve based on their individual actions and merits. People should be able to build something up – a family home, a farm, a business, some savings – without it being plundered by the Government. It means welfare for those who really need it, not a system that costs taxpayers ever more and traps people in a cycle of dependency. And conservatives believe in free markets. Under Labour we are in an economic doom loop. Higher taxation and more regulation lead to stagnation. Higher borrowing sends the Chancellor scrambling for yet higher taxes. Massive changes are needed to break out of this spiral, and make Britain a good place to grow a business. We believe in sound money: unlike others, we will not make fantasy promises that can never be delivered.
Telegraph
17 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Five years in jail for giving people smugglers social media boost
Anyone caught promoting people smugglers' services in social media posts will face up to five years in jail under new offences announced by the Government. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, is to change the law to criminalise the creation of online content which promotes or offers services facilitating a breach of UK immigration law. The new offence, to be introduced through an amendment to Labour's borders bill, will cover small boat crossings, the creation of fake travel documents such as passports or visas, or promising the chance to work illegally in the UK. It will also become a crime to post online content that encourages someone to break UK immigration law in exchange for money. This would cover someone being paid by a people smuggler to post material on social media which promotes illegal journeys to the UK. It will also be punishable by up to five years in jail. The new offences come as the Home Office revealed around 80 per cent of small boat migrants told officials they used social media during their illegal journey to the UK, including to locate or communicate with an agent or facilitator associated with a people-smuggling gang. More than 25,400 migrants have crossed the Channel to the UK so far this year in 432 small boats, up 50 per cent on last year's figure and the highest number since the first arrivals in 2018. Some 5,454 have made it in July alone in 80 boats. Ms Cooper said: 'Selling the false promise of a safe journey to the UK and a life in this country – whether on or offline – simply to make money, is nothing short of immoral. 'These criminals have no issue with leading migrants to life-threatening situations using brazen tactics on social media. We are determined to do everything we can to stop them – wherever they operate. 'We have to stay one step ahead of the ever-evolving tactics of people-smuggling gangs and this move, part of our plan for change to boost border security, will empower law enforcement to disable these tactics faster and more effectively, ensuring people face proper penalties.' The National Crime Agency (NCA) has smashed crime gangs using social media accounts to promote crossing, including a pair of men from Wales who ran an operation through Europe labelled ' Tripadvisor for people smugglers '. Dilshad Shamo, 41, and Ali Khdir, 40, brought about 100 migrants illegally to Europe each week over a period of two years and offered them bronze, silver, gold and platinum packages, depending on risk. They were convicted after pleading guilty to people-smuggling midway through their trial. A platinum package could get you a flight, whereas silver might land you a 'comfortable ride' in the back of a lorry. Migrants from the Middle East heading to Europe rated their journeys in videos filmed inside lorries, boats and even on planes. Investigators found the video reviews on the phones of the smugglers themselves, seemingly made as promotional material. Another network operated by Amanj Hasan Zada, a Preston-based smuggler later jailed for 17 years, also posted videos of migrants thanking him for helping them. Albanian gangs have used social media to promote £12,000 'package deals' to Britain, including accommodation and employment upon arrival. Since December 2021, the NCA has worked with social media companies to remove 22,000 posts promoting organised immigration crime. More than 8,000 were removed in 2024, a 40 per cent increase on the previous year. It follows measures introduced as part of the Online Safety Act under which social media companies have been required to prevent and remove adverts by people smugglers for small boat crossings of the Channel or face jail and multi-million pound fines under new laws. Under the Act, two current offences involving modern slavery or exploitation and aiding and abetting crossings have become 'priority' offences in the bill. This means social media firms have to proactively prevent the adverts from being posted and remove any that are put up. If they fail to do so, Ofcom, the watchdog, has powers to fine them up to 10 per cent of their global turnover, equivalent to £9.7 billion for Mark Zuckerberg's Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. The watchdog Ofcom will also be able to block their services in the UK.
Telegraph
17 minutes ago
- Telegraph
The British public deserves to know what Miliband discussed with Beijing
When the Government signed a deal on net-zero co-operation with Canada, the text of the memorandum was published. So too were the texts of deals with Ireland, Norway, South Korea and Chile. Five months after the Energy Secretary Ed Miliband signed a similar memorandum with the Chinese government, however, we are still in the dark as to precisely what was agreed. Chinese media have asserted that the Energy Secretary agreed to co-operation on power grids, battery storage, offshore wind power and carbon capture, among other areas; it is understood that Chinese investment in the UK was not discussed by Mr Miliband. The role of the Chinese state in Britain's net-zero ambitions may well be an uncomfortable issue for the Labour Government to discuss. While the Defence Secretary is insisting that Britain is 'ready to fight' over the future of Taiwan and the Foreign Secretary is explicitly referring to China as a 'sophisticated and persistent threat' that requires hundreds of millions of pounds in additional funding for the intelligence services, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been courting Chinese investment, and Mr Miliband's drive to meet his net-zero targets is heavily dependent on Chinese industry. Both the switch to electric vehicles and the decarbonisation of the energy grid will make heavy use of Chinese products. One study commissioned by the German defence ministry recently warned that this position at the heart of Western energy systems could result in Beijing enjoying the power to trigger remote shut-downs as 'an instrument of economic warfare'. Such concerns are less hypothetical than we might wish. Earlier this year, undocumented communication devices were located in Chinese-made power inverters exported to the United States, triggering fears that Beijing could use compromised equipment to 'physically destroy the grid'. This would be fully in line with the current approach of the People's Liberation Army to warfare as a clash between systems, and the extensive Volt Typhoon operation carried out by Chinese state-sponsored actors. Even given the understandable desire to avoid a sudden break with China, the delicacy of the balance between trade and reliance is such that the British public deserves to know what Mr Miliband has discussed with Beijing.
