At Prime Minister's Questions yesterday Michael Clapham asked Gordon Brown about the prospects for a change in the law to make blacklisting illegal.
Q5. [269364] Mr. Michael Clapham (Barnsley, West and Penistone) (Lab): The Prime Minister will be aware that the Information Commissioner recently found concrete evidence that blacklisting was widespread in the construction industry. Given that there was a consultation exercise in 2003, does he agree that it is now time to bring in the regulations to prohibit blacklisting, rather than—and before—going to a further consultation?
The Prime Minister: I am, as are the whole Government, very concerned by the evidence uncovered by the Information Commissioner about the re-emergence of blacklisting in the construction industry. In 1999, we established a power to introduce regulations to outlaw blacklisting, and we also consulted on draft regulations in 2003. Evidence at that time suggested that blacklisting had been eradicated but, given that there is new evidence that that is not the case, we are looking urgently at what we can do. We will assess whether the 2003 regulations, amended as necessary, should now be introduced to the House of Commons.
Update: UCATT has just issued a press release which takes a more positive line on Brown's comments (perhaps to paint him to a corner) and reveals that former minister Ian McCartney, who intoduced the original legislation, is now in favour of a ban.
An extra from the release says:
"It is monstrous that in the 21st century the majority of major construction companies were engaged in blacklisting. They were content to deny work simply because of a persons union membership or because they had tried to improve site safety.” ...
Meanwhile Ian McCartney the former minister, who in 1999 was responsible for introducing the Fairness at Work Act, has written to UCATT expressing his full support for the regulations to outlaw blacklisting being enacted at the earliest opportunity.
Mr McCartney, said: “The Government now has to hand the evidence required to prove the existence of blacklisting in the construction industry and that the commitment to enact the relevant sections of the 1999 Act should be implemented without delay.”
A piece I have just written for Tribune takes up the same theme. A BERR spokesman told me that the gobvernment was planning to issue a consultation document in the summer. Whether that counts as "urgent" is one thing - whether another around of consultation is needed is another.
My first couple of pars of my article are below.
The government looks set to carry out a consultation on possible changes to employment legislation to outlaw blacklisting.
Midlands
which compiled files on trade union activists. Investigators also uncovered invoices from some 40 construction companies which subscribed to The Consulting Association.
In a House of Commons debate a month ago, employment minister Pat Mcfadden, said he and his officials would be studying the evidence seized by the ICO closely and would “come to a conclusion in the near future”.
Now a spokesman for the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform says that it “will hold meetings with interested parties though April and issue a consultation document in the summer”.
Next month Ian Kerr, who ran The Consulting Association, is due to appear before Macclesfield Magistrates Court charged with offences under the Data Protection Act. Kerr kept files on more than 3,000 people in total with detailed information on around 1,600.
ENDS
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