Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has plans to reduce the minimum time served as an employee before entitlement to statutory redundancy pay begins.

The two-year qualifying period for entitlement to statutory redundancy pay strikes the balance between providing fairness to employees who have demonstrated commitment to their employer and avoiding undue financial burdens on employers or the National Insurance Fund.

The statutory redundancy scheme is intended to provide a minimum “safety net” of entitlement for vulnerable employees, and the legislation leaves the parties free to negotiate and agree improvements on the statutory entitlement according to their own priorities, needs and circumstances, and what can be afforded.