Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy of 27 April 2021, Official Report, column 86WH, what steps have been taken by the Department to (a) investigate the use of fire and rehire tactics by executive non-departmental public bodies, (b) communicate the Government's policy on fire and rehire tactics to those bodies and (c) discourage the use of fire and rehire tactics by those bodies.

Non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) have a role in the process of national government but are not part of a government department. They operate at arm’s length from Ministers, though a Minister will be responsible to Parliament for the NDPBs.

Although we have not targeted NDPBs specifically in our communications, this Government has been clear that we expect all employers to treat their employees fairly and in the spirit of partnership. Using threats about firing and rehiring as a negotiation tactic is unacceptable. We expect employers and employees to negotiate new terms and conditions and there are laws around how this must be done, and protections in place when firms are considering redundancies.

Last year, we asked the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) to collect evidence into how fire and rehire is being used by employers. This report was published on 8 June. We have asked Acas to produce better, more comprehensive, clearer guidance to help all employers explore all the options before considering ‘fire and rehire’ and encourage good employment relations practice. This will be relevant to all employers.