Unpaid Internships

Lord Watts Excerpts

Monday 18th December 2017 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton]

My noble friend gets to the heart of the matter because this is about social mobility. We have to ensure that placements are available; for example, people who are on work experience placements as part of a university degree are not liable to the minimum wage in those circumstances because those places would not exist if that requirement were not needed. We must pay tribute to all companies that take young people and give them the confidence to proceed in their career as they want to do.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, just because the Minister says things are improving does not mean that they are. Can she provide to the House and put in the Library the information on which she is basing her claim?

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton]

I will certainly see what evidence I can find and put it in the Library. As I have already said to noble Lords, it is very difficult to give an accurate forecast or indeed any evidence as to how many people are in unpaid internships. What is important is the extra money that will mean that HMRC can be far more proactive about the work that it does. This is up to third parties as well. I encourage the noble Lord and indeed all noble Lords: if they see a person working and they should be getting paid, it is up to all of us to take responsibility and report that behaviour so that it can be dealt with.