Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the written statement on Implementing the Employment Rights Act: June Consultations on Employment Rights for Unpaid Carers, Time off for Public Duties and Government responses, HCWS100, made on 9 June 2026, for what reason the public duties for national organisations are being removed.

The Government comprehensively reviewed the Time Off for Public Duties legislation and set out our findings in the Time Off for Public Duties Review Report (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/time-off-for-public-duties-review-report). We are now consulting on proposed changes to the list of duties eligible for time off, which is open until 4 September. No decisions on potential changes will be taken before these consultation responses are analysed. We propose that public duties for national organisations are removed because they do not align with the legislation’s original purpose, which was to enable working people to play an active role in shaping and supporting their local community.