Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper, published on 15 March 2023, what requirements his Department will place on employers to consult with employees before accepting or rejecting a flexible working request; and in what way the Government will ensure that those requirements are enforced.

The Government is pleased to support the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill which will introduce a requirement for employers to consult with an employee before rejecting their statutory flexible working request. The Bill does not specify what form the consultation should take.

The Government will work with both the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service and the Flexible Working Taskforce to develop appropriate guidance on each of the measures that the Bill will introduce.

If an employer does not handle a request as required by Part 8A of the Employment Rights Act 1996, an employee may be able to bring a claim to an Employment Tribunal.