Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many people took up unpaid parental leave between 1 January and 31 December 2022.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Department does not hold data on the number of people who have taken unpaid parental leave between January and December 2022. Findings from the Fourth Work-Life Balance Employee Survey (2012) indicate that 11% of employee parents with children aged under 6 took parental leave in the previous 12 months, available here - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/work-life-balance-survey-number-4
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many people received statutory adoption pay between 1 January and 31 December 2022.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Information provided by employers to HM Revenue and Customs show that there were 4,600 individuals in receipt of Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP) in 2021/22 (the latest year for which full year data is available).
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many people received statutory parental bereavement pay between 1 January and 31 December 2022.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
HM Revenue and Customs receives Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay (SPBP) data through employers’ Pay As You Earn submissions via the Real Time Information system. However, reliable data on the number of recipients of SPBP is not currently available and will be subject to further data quality checks before it can be provided.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, in relation to the draft Statutory Code of Practice on Dismissal and Re-engagement, what procedures the Government plans to follow where employers engaged in Government procurement contracts are found to have fallen foul of that code.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government is currently consulting on a draft Code of Practice to address dismissal and re-engagement. The Government has made clear to all employers that threats of dismissal and re-engagement should not be used as a negotiation tactic.
Public procurement policy is subject to a legal framework which encourages free and open competition and value for money, in line with internationally and nationally agreed obligations and regulations.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has (a) met or (b) corresponded with the Director of Labour Market Enforcement between 25 October 2022 and 25 January 2022 on the potential introduction of a Single Enforcement Body for Employment Rights.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
This Government remains committed to workers’ rights and enforcement. An important part of this is the ongoing sponsorship of and work with the Director of Labour Market Enforcement (DLME). The last meeting between myself and Margaret Beels, the DLME, was on the 7th February 2023. We have also corresponded by letter.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what the (a) mean and (b) median number of weeks of maternity leave taken by new mothers is; and what proportion of new mothers take (i) 1-25 weeks, (ii) 26 weeks, (iii) 27-38 weeks, (iv) 39 weeks, (v) 40-51 weeks, (vi) 52 weeks and (vii) 53 weeks or more of maternity leave.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Department for Business and Trade does not routinely collect data on the length of maternity leave taken by mothers. However, in order to gather information among parents on how parental entitlements, including Maternity Leave, are used in practice, the Government commissioned the Parental Rights Survey as part of the Shared Parental Leave (SPL) evaluation.
We intend to publish the SPL evaluation and underpinning research, which includes information on the duration of Statutory Maternity Leave, in due course. Findings from the previous Maternity and Paternity Rights Survey are available here - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/maternity-and-paternity-rights-and-women-returners-survey-200910-rr777
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many suppliers her Department excluded from procurement on the grounds of (a) fraud, (b) corruption and (c) other grounds under the Public Contract Regulations 2015 from 2015 to 2022.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
In response we confirm that the Department for Business and Trade has not excluded suppliers from procurement on the grounds of either a) fraud or b) corruption.
In response to c) other grounds under the Public Contract Regulations 2015, some suppliers have been excluded for technical reasons but we do not hold a central record of these so are unable to confirm the quantity.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the draft Code of Practice on dismissal and re-engagement, published on 24 January 2023, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of financial penalties on the use of dismissal and re-engagement policies by employers.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government is currently consulting on a draft Code of Practice to address dismissal and re-engagement. Once in force, an Employment Tribunal will be able to increase an employee’s compensation in certain circumstances by up to 25% if an employer has unreasonably failed to comply with the Code. The uplift should deter employers from using controversial tactics and failing to engage in meaningful consultations with employees and their representatives.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the draft Code of Practice on dismissal and re-engagement, published on 24 January 2023, what the last resort scenarios are in which dismissal and re-engagement tactics could be used.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government is currently consulting on a draft Code of Practice to address dismissal and re-engagement. Once in force, the Code will deter employers from using controversial tactics and failing to engage in meaningful consultations with employees and their representatives. The Code is designed to cover a wide range of different circumstances, it will be for Employment Tribunals to decide where an employer has unreasonably failed to comply with the Code.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many employers were named under the National Minimum Wage Naming Scheme each year between 2011 and 2022.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Since the National Minimum Wage Naming Scheme began in February 2014, we have named 2,495 employers. Publicly naming employers who do not comply with the rules remains an important part of our enforcement and compliance toolkit. It clearly shows that it is never acceptable to underpay workers and that employers who do will be held responsible. The table below sets out how many employers have been named to date.
Round | Date of Naming | Employers named |
1 | Feb 2014 | 5 |
2 | Jun 2014 | 25 |
3 | Nov 2014 | 25 |
4 | Jan 2015 | 37 |
5 | Feb 2015 | 70 |
6 | Mar 2015 | 48 |
7 | Jul 2015 | 75 |
8 | Oct 2015 | 113 |
9 | Feb 2016 | 92 |
10 | Aug 2016 | 197 |
11 | Feb 2017 | 359 |
12 | Aug 2017 | 233 |
13 | Dec 2017 | 260 |
14 | Mar 2018 | 179 |
15 | Jun 2018 | 239 |
16 | Dec 2020 | 139 |
17 | Aug 2021 | 191 |
18 | Dec 2021 | 208 |
Total |
| 2,495 |