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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment the Government has made of the potential economic effects of employees who have accrued large amounts of holiday while furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme utilising that entitlement immediately on the lifting of covid-19 lockdown measures.

Under the Working Time Regulations 1998, almost all workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks annual leave, which should be paid as if workers were still at work and working. Annual leave continues to accrue as long as the worker maintains their employment relationship with their employer, which is the case whilst an employee is on a period of furlough through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. Workers on furlough are able to take annual leave, and employers are able to require them to do so. This will prevent large build-ups that would need to be used at the end of the lockdown measures.

The Government has been clear that employment rights remain unchanged under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. Therefore, as holiday rights are unaffected by the scheme, no assessment has been made.