Brexit: Women in the Workplace

Baroness Crawley Excerpts

Tuesday 16th January 2018 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Crawley]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effect on women in the workplace of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Lord Henley) (Con)]

My Lords, we have made a clear commitment to protect workers’ rights and to ensure that they keep pace with the changing labour market. We will not roll back EU rights for women in the workplace.

[Baroness Crawley (Lab)]

I thank the Minister for his reply, but I am not sure that I am convinced by his rebranding of the Government as champions of equality and workplace rights. Their lukewarm response to the recent House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee report on this subject speaks volumes. Does the Minister accept that British women facing discrimination in accessing their maternity rights at work, for instance—and his own Government’s figures bear this out; there are thousands of women who face discrimination in this area—would have a better future if we aligned ourselves as closely as possible with EU legislation and European Court of Justice case law in this area post Brexit?

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, obviously we will take note of what the EU does, but one of the important things about Brexit is that we can make our decisions about this. We do not have to be part of the EU to have high standards in the workplace. We already go way beyond the EU minimum standards in a number of important areas, such as annual leave, maternity leave and flexible working. But it is for the United Kingdom Parliament to consider these matters, not the EU.