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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his Department's policy is on giving covid-19 related grants and loans to businesses that engage in fire and rehire tactics.

The Government has provided an unprecedented package of support for UK businesses to help them survive the Covid-19 pandemic, including direct grants and government-backed loans. Grants and loans were offered to businesses in accordance with the eligibility criteria for those schemes

The Government has made clear to all employers that using threats to ‘fire and rehire’ as a tactic to pressure workers during negotiations on changes to terms and conditions is unacceptable. We expect employers to treat their employees fairly and in the spirit of partnership. There are laws around how negotiations must be done, and protections in place when firms are considering redundancies.