Asked by: Chris Bloore (Labour - Redditch)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the powers of employment tribunals to seize and destroy lists of blacklisted workers.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As part of the Plan to Make Work Pay, the Department for Business and Trade intends to publish a consultation on blacklisting protections in due course. The consultation will cover, amongst other things, the powers of employment tribunals in regard to lists of blacklisted workers. The government will carefully consider responses to the consultation before outlining next steps.
Asked by: Chris Bloore (Labour - Redditch)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department offers (a) paid time off work and (b) other support to employees who become kinship carers.
Answered by Justin Madders
Employees can apply for five days paid special leave as a friends and family carer, this can be increased to ten days in a 12-month period.
Employees also have the statutory right to take up to a week’s unpaid leave in any 12-month period, to provide or arrange care for a dependant with a long-term care need.
DBT has an Employee Assistance Programme which provides impartial and confidential advice, counselling and online resources for all employees. The department also has a Carer’s group which is a support network for carers working at DBT
Asked by: Chris Bloore (Labour - Redditch)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions he has had with industry representatives on the potential impact of the EU's revised Drinking Water Directive on (a) product standards and (b) market access.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland
This Government continues to follow EU regulatory developments with interest, engaging with the EU on key regulatory developments via TCA structures. The Drinking Water Directive has not been discussed or raised with my Department.
UK businesses exporting to the EU must ensure that they comply with EU requirements for accessing the EU market. Guidance in respect of regulatory compliance with the revised Drinking Water Directive is the responsibility of the European Commission.