Speeches by Smith.

“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…”

“Sure. Martyn Gray: No, is the very short answer to that. It needs to go further in terms of protections for those who work at sea. There are still monumental gaps in the protections that are afforded to seafarers compared with the protections afforded to land-based workers, even under existing employment legislation, a…”

“Mr Gray? Martyn Gray: To clarify, I am a director of organising for a trade union, so I will answer from the perspective of whether the legislation goes far enough, if that is okay.”

“Yes. Gemma Griffin: No, is the answer, because we are very much trying to create a situation in which our colleagues have rights and are treated fairly. The most important thing is that there is a level playing field and that whoever operates in the same space as us, the law applies to them. If we are all UK-based and …”

“But on the question about the unintended consequences of elements of the Bill— Gemma Griffin: Do I see any unintended consequences for our land-based employees?”

“Q What about your ports-based staff—your land-based staff? Gemma Griffin: Our land-based staff are already covered.”

“Q Good afternoon to the witnesses. When any wide-reaching legislation that is seeking to make a number of changes to employment law comes in, there are likely to be unintended consequences. I will put the question in two halves. To Ms Griffin and Mr Gray, do you see any unintended consequences that could damage your bu…”

“Q We heard from witnesses in previous sessions that they worry that some measures in the Bill—on zero-hours contracts and some of the fire and rehire potential unintended consequences—will make some employers more reticent to take on a new hire, or to take a gamble on someone who might need a chance or second chance, o…”

“Q Good afternoon, gentlemen. I will ask you the same questions I have asked most witnesses today. This is a thick Bill; there are lots of measures in it. In the interests of the people you represent in food, drink and manufacturing, which of those measures have the Government got wrong? Which are in the right ballpark,…”

“Q Mr Carberry, if I can come to you, looking at those you represent, what is it in the Bill that you think is right, wrong or needs amendment? Neil Carberry: I will not repeat what Allen said about the aggregate cost of the Bill, but clearly it is an enormous piece of legislation, coming at a time when businesses—parti…”

“Q Have you had any feedback from your members on their willingness going forward to take on the very people you have just talked about—employees with caring responsibilities, students, people with complex situations in their lives who find a zero-hours contract useful—and whether some of them are reticent about taking …”

“Q How many of the employees in the UK hospitality sector are currently on zero-hours contracts? Allen Simpson: It is about 17% in total. If you look at who those people are, they are largely who you would think—students and people with caring responsibilities. I think about my mum, who worked on what we would now call …”

“Q Can you give us a hint of the ambers? It is important that the Committee knows where different sectors are concerned. Allen Simpson: There is something around statutory sick pay, which is worth considering. There is a tendency, when we look at what a good job means, to build around the paradigm of an office, when wor…”

“Q Mr Carberry, I will come to you shortly, but Mr Simpson, to continue that theme: this is a pretty wide-ranging Bill with a lot of measures. Which of them do you think the Government have got wrong, which you would like to see either deleted or amended? Allen Simpson: I have a red, amber and green list in front of me,…”

“Q33 Thank you, Ms Vaz. It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair and to serve under your chairmanship. Good afternoon. May I start with Mr Simpson? UKHospitality has been quite critical of this Bill in the media and in a wider setting. You have just said you represent a very large number of people. Do you think after th…”

“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…”