Employment Rights Bill

Baroness Meyer Excerpts

Committee stage
Tuesday 29th April 2025 Lords Chamber

Ultimately, I am conscious that the Government did put this in their manifesto, but we need to make sure that the legislation is fit for purpose and that it does not end up creating unemployment rather than employment. I also believe that the way that the noble Lord, Lord Fox, tabled his final amendment in this group is a sensible approach of saying that nothing else can start until it is clear for employers how they are expected to undertake this massive legislation, which will add to the already complex employment law situation we have today.

[Baroness Meyer (Con)]

My Lords, I, too, support what the noble Baroness, Lady Noakes, and the noble Lord, Lord Frost, said. I too am very worried about this Bill and its outcome, which be to kill job creation, drive away investments and slow economic growth. It could drive unemployment, fuel inflation and trigger social unrest. It risks taking us back to the economic chaos of the 1970s, when trade unions held the country to ransom.

Back then, strikes paralysed the country. Businesses went bust and the UK entered a period of stagnation and crisis known as the “winter of discontent”. Some of us are old enough to remember it. Inflation soared to 24% in 1975. The economy flattened. The country was forced to beg the IMF for a bailout of around £3.9 billion; that is worth around £20 billion today. I remember the queues, the power cuts and the garbage piling up in the streets. I remember the feeling of helplessness as Britain slid deeper into decline.

Most of all, I remember the humiliation of seeing our great nation ranked as one of the worst-performing economies in Europe. While France and Germany grew richer, we grew poorer. Our reputation was in tatters and we were known as the “sick man of Europe”. It took bold leadership and tough decisions to turn the tide. That leadership came in the form of Margaret Thatcher. Love her or hate her, she saved Britain from economic collapse. She imposed the discipline that was needed to rebuild our economy and restore our standing in the world.

See where we are now. As has been pointed out, if we have consistently outperformed many European countries in recovering faster from the financial crisis and the pandemic, it is because of the flexibility of our economy. Do we really want to follow the French example, where unemployment rates are at 7.4%, with youth unemployment at 19.2%? That is a result of high labour costs, rigid laws, excessive bureaucracy, early retirement and overly strong—

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

Unions.

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[Baroness Meyer (Con)]

Unions; thank you. Remove flexibility and you remove opportunity. This will especially attack young people looking for their first job. We will end up with more workers’ rights but fewer jobs. That is why we need to examine this Bill and take account of all of the amendments—or, possibly, just scrap the Bill altogether.

[Baroness Lawlor (Con)]

My Lords, I support—