Asked by: Maureen Burke (Labour - Glasgow North East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many workers in Glasgow are estimated to benefit from day-one rights when the Employment Rights Act comes into force on 1 April 2026.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Across the UK from 6 April 2026, new day one rights will now allow 32,000 more dads and partners each year to take paternity leave and 1.5m more parents to take unpaid parental leave. This will support working families to juggle the modern demands of work with raising children. The government is also bringing in changes that will mean up to 1.3 million more employees, particularly in lower-paid or part-time roles are able to access Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) through the removal of the Lower Earnings Limit and ensuring all employees can access SSP from the first day of sickness absence.
Analysis also shows Scotland is expected to disproportionately benefit from the Employment Rights Act. Further detail on this analysis can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/employment-rights-bill-impact-assessments
Asked by: Maureen Burke (Labour - Glasgow North East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what guidance and support is available to businesses in Scotland to help ensure compliance with the Employment Rights Act.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Employment Rights Act 2025 will be delivered gradually over a two-year period to give businesses time to prepare.
We are working in partnership with business organisations to build awareness about the changes and ensure there is practical support available.
We have also rolled out a new online resource offering practical guidance and support on what the changes mean and how to comply. All businesses and other employers in Scotland, Wales and England, can visit business.gov.uk/employment-changes to find clear timelines, a summary of key changes and actions to take, and links to additional guidance.
Asked by: Maureen Burke (Labour - Glasgow North East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate he has made of the number of people that will be impacted by the increase to the national minimum wage in Glasgow North East constituency.
Answered by Justin Madders
The Government will publish an Impact Assessment alongside the legislation that implements the increase to the National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage in 2025. This will include analysis of the number of workers affected by region and country. More granular estimates by constituency are subject to greater data reliability issues due to survey response rates.