Working from Home Debate

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Lord Tunnicliffe

Main Page: Lord Tunnicliffe (Labour - Life peer)

Working from Home

Lord Tunnicliffe Excerpts
Monday 4th July 2022

(2 years, 5 months ago)

Lords Chamber
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Baroness Penn Portrait Baroness Penn (Con)
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I would absolutely echo my noble friend’s language around balance, and he has mentioned some of the other benefits of hybrid working that we have discussed. Each government department sets its own hybrid working policy. The Treasury, for example, expects staff to work 50% of the time in the office and the remaining time at home over a two-week period. I think that strikes a balance.

Lord Tunnicliffe Portrait Lord Tunnicliffe (Lab)
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My Lords, flexible working is one of the many issues that could and should be included in an employment Bill. That legislation has been promised for years, but still we wait for the Government to bring forward proposals. With these questions becoming more urgent, why did the Government opt against including that Bill in the recent Queen’s Speech?

Baroness Penn Portrait Baroness Penn (Con)
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My Lords, I am afraid that I am not sure I can add to any previous answers on the employment Bill, except to say that we are still committed to bringing one forward when parliamentary time allows. However, progress on our Good Work agenda does not need to wait for the Bill: we have made progress on a number of initiatives, either through secondary legislation or policy changes, and we will continue to look for those opportunities to make progress on that agenda.