logo
UK workers' rights bill ‘undermines devolution', Senedd

UK workers' rights bill ‘undermines devolution', Senedd

Luke Fletcher backed the principles of the bill: 'Day-one rights for workers, zero-hours contracts being revised, removing restrictions on unions [and] ending fire and rehire.'
But the Plaid Cymru politician expressed serious concerns about powers in the bill for UK ministers to override decisions made by the Welsh Government.
He told the Senedd: 'We are seeing provisions that encroach on the ability of this [Welsh] Government and this place to legislate on behalf of the people of Wales.'
Mr Fletcher said: 'In the same way the Welsh Government would've opposed such a power grab in the days of a Tory government, I would hope they would do exactly the same now.'
Peter Fox, who chairs the health committee, expressed similar concerns, saying: 'The Welsh Government has a long-standing commitment to promote fair pay in the social care workforce, yet has not brought forward its own bill.
'The effect of this choice is to severely limit the opportunities for stakeholders in Wales to be involved in the legislative process and for the Senedd to examine the policy in detail.'
Warning of a £5bn cost to businesses, his Conservative colleague Altaf Hussain said his party would vote against providing consent to the employment rights bill.
He told the Senedd: 'Although the intentions behind this legislation appear commendable, I am concerned about the significant burden it will impose on businesses across the UK.'
Jack Sargeant, who is minister for fair work in the Welsh Government, said the bill will be the single biggest upgrade to workers' rights in a generation.
Mr Sargeant told Senedd members: 'It enhances employment rights, it strengthens enforcement and it removes unnecessary restrictions on trade unions.'
He agreed with Ms Blythyn, one of his predecessors as minister: 'I do note some of the concerns from some members in the contributions today but we do believe it's very much in the best interest of the social care sector and social care workers in Wales.'
Senedd members voted 27-13 in favour of the LCM on July 15, with Plaid Cymru abstaining.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

UK and India to sign trade deal during Modi state visit
UK and India to sign trade deal during Modi state visit

ITV News

time28 minutes ago

  • ITV News

UK and India to sign trade deal during Modi state visit

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to the UK will see the signing of a landmark free trade deal. It is expected to see £6 billion invested into the UK economy and create 2,200 jobs, making it the largest deal of its kind for economic impact on Britain. Tariffs on a range of British goods will be reduced from an average of 15% to 3%, in hopes of boosting imports into the south Asian nation. Whisky tariffs will be slashed in half, and are expected to fall further over successive years. Soft drinks, cars and cosmetics will also see cheaper duties. Prime Minister Keir Starmer will meet with Modi on Thursday to sign off on the deal. Before his meeting with Modi to confirm the deal, Starmer said: "Our landmark trade deal with India is a major win for Britain. "It will create thousands of British jobs across the UK, unlock new opportunities for businesses and drive growth in every corner of the country, delivering on our Plan for Change. "We're putting more money in the pockets of hardworking Brits and helping families with the cost of living, and we're determined to go further and faster to grow the economy and raise living standards across the UK." Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the investment will "reach all regions and nations of the UK so working people in every community can feel the benefits". The Prime Minister and his Indian counterpart also agreed ahead of their meeting to ramp up joint efforts to tackle corruption, fraud, organised crime and illegal migration, by sharing criminal records and other intelligence. The deal promises some benefits to the UK's financial services, but not as much as the Government would have liked. It is understood that talks continue regarding a bilateral investment treaty aimed at protecting investments in both countries. The two nations also continue to discuss UK plans for a tax on high-carbon industries, which India believes could hit its imports unfairly. The deal has been in the works for years. Negotiations first began in 2022 under Boris Johnson, and were concluded in May this year. Labour sought to portray closing the deal, as well as trade agreements with the US and the EU, as evidence of the Government's pragmatism and global outlook. But shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said it had only been made possible "because of Brexit delivered by the Conservatives". He added: "Any trade deal that can successfully cut regulation which stops Britain's makers from creating new jobs and wealth will be a step in the right direction. "But the irony should not be lost on anyone that any gains from this trade deal will be blown out of the water by Angela Rayner's union charter, stifling business with red tape, the jobs tax and, come autumn, Rachel Reeves' inevitable tax hikes that will punish Britain's makers just to reward those who do not contribute." The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has said that the signing "sends a powerful signal that the UK is open for business and remains resolute in its commitment to free and fair trade". Chief executive Rain Newton-Smith added: "A trade agreement with India - one of the world's fastest-growing economies - is a springboard for long-term partnership and prosperity. UK firms can take advantage of this new platform to scale, diversify and compete on the global stage." Starmer is facing calls to raise the case of detained blogger Jagtar Singh Johal with Modi. The Scottish Sikh has been detained in India since 2017, and is accused of being a member of the Khalistan Liberation Force, which is banned as a terror group in India. His family say he is being arbitrarily detained, with his brother Gurpreet Singh Johal insisting the matter should be "high on the agenda when the prime ministers meet".

Use offices or lose them, Eluned Morgan tells Welsh government staff
Use offices or lose them, Eluned Morgan tells Welsh government staff

BBC News

time29 minutes ago

  • BBC News

Use offices or lose them, Eluned Morgan tells Welsh government staff

The Welsh government "can't justify continuing to hold offices open if people don't turn up" to work in them, First Minister Eluned Morgan has aim to have staff working from the office two days a week, or 40% of the time, but in March daily office attendances averaged 16%, and just 9% at a "main hub" in Merthyr Welsh government has about 5,700 staff spread across 20 sites, and is holding a review of office requirements in Powys "partly because of the change in the way that people work", Morgan said. The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) said "we have no reason to believe the current arrangements are not working". The 15 "core offices" include the main hubs of Cathays Park in Cardiff, Rhyd-y-Car in Merthyr Tydfil, Rhodfa Padarn in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, and Sarn Mynach in Llandudno Junction, Conwy running costs are £24.5m, according to latest five offices and premises are located across Wales "to ensure a dispersed presence and to ensure that services can be delivered to meet business needs", the Welsh government added "most staff continued to work remotely during 2023-2024. The evidence being that a higher proportion are doing so on a regular basis". Independent MS Russell George raised concerns in the Senedd last week about the future of the office in Newtown, office had the highest average daily percentage attendance in March at 22% - 17 said it was important to have government offices across Wales "because those offices and the staff who work there support shops and services in towns as well".He added: "It is important to employ and retain people who live in mid Wales to make the Welsh government more reflective of the needs and requirements of all people, from all communities across Wales."Morgan replied: "We are having a review at the moment, partly because of the change in the way that people work."It is important that we encourage people to come into work; we are encouraging them to come in. "But, clearly, there will come a point where you have to say 'if you don't turn up, we cannot justify keeping this particular office open'.The review of the Powys offices, in Llandrindod Wells and Newtown, is due to be completed by the end of September. The attendances at other offices in March included:Cathays Park, Cardiff - 19% (576 staff)Caernarfon, Gwynedd - 17% (17)Aberystwyth, Ceredigion - 15% (42)Llandrindod Wells, Powys - 12% (13) Llandudno Junction, Conwy - 12% (49)Penllergaer, Swansea - 10% (34)Carmarthen - 10% (33)Merthyr Tydfil - 9% (55)The average daily attendance in January and February was 15%. The Welsh government's latest State of the Estate report, for 2023-24, published in May, said it "looks back on a year where our offices remained under occupied as staff continued to work remotely". "This is being addressed by an ongoing increase in the amount of spaces now allocated to public sector tenants. "More of our spaces are being used as public sector hubs while Welsh government staff adopt a hybrid model of working."It continues, "the need for staff to be dispersed across Wales constrains opportunities for further office closures, however options to 'right size' is actively considered through development of business cases, investment appraisals and consultation with staff and trade unions as opportunities, such as break clauses or lease terminations, arise".It cites the example of the office at Grosvenor Road, Wrexham, which was vacated when its lease came to an end in January 2024, relocating staff into a smaller, single unit also in Wrexham. The report also said an empty office block at Picton Terrace, Carmarthen, was surplus to requirements and being marketed, and "uncertainty about long-term working patterns have been a factor in this office space remaining vacant".The report added "as remote working practices become more embedded it is anticipated that the nature of the office estate will change further and more opportunities for efficiencies will arise".Other public bodies given office space since the Covid pandemic include the Welsh language commissioner and the Food Standards Heathcote, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, told the BBC: "The current blended working arrangements at Welsh government have been developed with unions through working in social partnership, and we have no reason to believe the current arrangements are not working. "At such a time they are up for review, this will be done via social partnership with the Welsh government and recognised trade unions." FDA national officer Jane Runeckles said: "Work is what you do, not where you do it. "The world of work has changed, and Welsh government should take pride in the fact it has taken a leading role in this."She added a sensible approach to hybrid working would help the Welsh government "recruit and retain the brightest and best".

I can't spend all my time worrying about regicide
I can't spend all my time worrying about regicide

Western Telegraph

time35 minutes ago

  • Western Telegraph

I can't spend all my time worrying about regicide

The Conservative leader said that the public are 'not yet ready to forgive' the Tory party, more than a year on from the general election. Speaking to the Financial Times in the week she reshuffled her top team, Mrs Badenoch played down the idea of threats to her leadership. 'I can't spend all my time worrying about regicide, I would lose my mind,' she said. She added: 'I'm so thick-skinned to the point where I don't even notice if people are trying to create harm. 'That's extremely useful in this job.' The New Statesman reported that many Tory MPs who backed Mrs Badenoch in the leadership contest have privately turned on her, and believe her core team of advisers are 'lightweights and sycophants'. Faltering Conservatives may seek to trigger a vote of confidence in their leader in November, once a grace period protecting her from such a move ends, the magazine said. Sir James Cleverly and Kemi Badenoch during a visit to a housing development in north-west London (Lucy North/PA) Asked about suggestions that Tory MPs were already plotting a coup, Mrs Badenoch told the PA news agency on Wednesday: 'I would say that if nobody put their name to it, then I'm not paying any attention to it.' Among the changes announced as part of Mrs Badenoch's reshuffle this week was the return of Sir James Cleverly to the front bench as shadow housing secretary. In his first full day in the job, Sir James accused the Prime Minister of being more interested in finding accommodation for asylum seekers than 'hardworking young people'. He said he was 'furious' when the Prime Minister 'blithely' said there are 'plenty of houses' around the UK for asylum seekers. Sir Keir Starmer insisted there was 'lots of housing available' to accommodate rising numbers of homeless people and asylum seekers when he was questioned by senior MPs earlier this week. Sir James told Times Radio: 'I was furious, I genuinely couldn't believe he said this, when the Prime Minister was at the Liaison Committee and blithely said, 'Oh, there are plenty of houses around the UK for asylum seekers'.' Sir James also said he understands the frustrations of local people when asked about demonstrations outside hotels believed to be housing asylum seekers. There has been a series of protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, since an asylum seeker was charged with sexual assault. His new role makes him the opposition counterpart to Angela Rayner in her housing, communities and local government brief, but not in her deputy prime minister post. Ms Rayner said on Tuesday that immigration was among issues having a 'profound impact on society' as she updated the Cabinet on her work on social cohesion. Mrs Badenoch made a series of further changes to the junior ranks of her shadow cabinet on Wednesday, completing her reshuffle. Among the appointments was the return of Stockton West MP Matt Vickers to the job of deputy chairman of the Tory party. Mr Vickers was in the job for two years from summer 2022, but resigned last August to back Robert Jenrick in the leadership election. He also retains his job as a shadow home office minister.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store