Draft Protection Against Detriment (Industrial Action) Regulations 2026
House of Commons · General Committees · 2 Sep 2026 · 30 speeches · Official Report
The Committee consisted of the following Members:
Chair: †Valerie Vaz
† Baker, Richard (Glenrothes and Mid Fife) (Lab)
† Cooper, Andrew (Mid Cheshire) (Lab)
Cooper, Daisy (St Albans) (LD)
† Costigan, Deirdre (Ealing Southall) (Lab)
† Davies, Gareth (Grantham and Bourne) (Con)
† Dearden, Kate (Minister for the Future of Work)
† Downie, Graeme (Dunfermline and Dollar) (Lab)
† Duncan-Jordan, Neil (Poole) (Lab)
† Fortune, Peter (Bromley and Biggin Hill) (Con)
† Hurley, Patrick (Southport) (Lab)
† Mak, Alan (Havant) (Con)
† Maynard, Charlie (Witney) (LD)
† Niblett, Samantha (South Derbyshire) (Lab)
† Nichols, Charlotte (Warrington North) (Lab)
Paul, Rebecca (Reigate) (Con)
† Thomas, Fred (Plymouth Moor View) (Lab)
† Wheeler, Michael (Worsley and Eccles) (Lab)
Kay Gammie, Committee Clerk
† attended the Committee
Sixth Delegated Legislation Committee
Wednesday 2 September 2026
[Valerie Vaz in the Chair ]
Draft Protection Against Detriment (Industrial Action) Regulations 2026
I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Protection Against Detriment (Industrial Action) Regulations 2026. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Vaz. This draft instrument was laid before the House on 24 June 2026 and relates to protection against detriment for workers taking protected industrial action under the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. It is being introduced to provide essential protection to workers, ensuring that they can take industrial action without being treated unfairly by their employer as a result. The 2024 Supreme Court judgment in Secretary of State for Business and Trade v . Mercer ruled that the current protections from detriment for trade union activity under section 146 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act do not extend to protected industrial action. As a result, the Supreme Court made a declaration of incompatibility between UK legislation and article 11 of the European convention on human rights, the right to free association. This means that there is a gap in the law that could enable bad faith employers to unfairly penalise workers taking industrial action. While it should always be treated as a last resort, this Government believe that industrial action is an integral and vital part of a worker’s right to express their collective voice if they choose to. If a worker does choose to take industrial action, it is essential that employers treat them fairly and with...
The Chair
Before I call the Opposition spokesperson, let me place on record my thanks to him for the assiduous way he has dealt with delegated legislation when I have been in the Chair, and I wish him good luck in his new role. I call the shadow Minister.
I was going to say it is a great pleasure to be on this Committee, but it is an even greater pleasure after that wonderful remark. I am very grateful, and it is a great pleasure to see you in the Chair, Ms Vaz. It is also a great pleasure to see the Minister, as usual; I thank her very much indeed for her explanation of the Government’s intentions for the draft regulations before us. As I think I have stressed at every Delegated Legislation Committee under this Department, it is important that these changes strike the right balance-in this instance, between ensuring that employees are able to exercise their right to industrial action in certain circumstances and in accordance with the law, and the interests of businesses and employers upon whom our future prosperity depends. To that end, I have a few questions about the measures. At the end of part one of the explanatory memorandum it states that guidance covering these regulations will be updated next month, in October. Does that mean that employers will be left in the dark about the specifics of their new, added responsibilities until the date that these regulations come into effect? More broadly, that seems to be a recurring theme of statutory instruments laid by this Department. I suggest that the hon. Lady and her colleagues try to put themselves in the position of a business, particularly a small business. Whether or not one agrees with the Government’s regulatory changes, businesses deserve fair and reasonable time to...
I thank the shadow Minister for his remarks; it has been a pleasure to debate him in numerous secondary legislation Committees. He is always diligent with his questions and his scrutiny, and I appreciate that and wish him well in his new role. Taking the shadow Minister’s questions in turn, he mentioned the impact on businesses of understanding the guidance that will be in place and ensuring that they feel prepared to address and adapt if necessary. We of course consulted business representatives, as we did at length throughout every stage of the Employment Rights Act, to gain their views on this guidance in particular. We will move at pace to ensure that employers get that support with the guidance so that they can comply as necessary. I would add, however, that at the moment employers very rarely have to impose detriments, so we do not believe that there will be a significant amount of work for employers to do. I referred in my opening remarks to the frequency of employers imposing detriments on workers taking industrial action and how rare it is. Given the scale of employers having to understand the guidance, we do not really see the risk as significant, but of course we will work to publish as soon as possible and work closely with businesses, as we always do. The shadow Minister mentioned the frequency of strike action, and I gently remind him of the unfortunate highs under the previous Government: 2.5 million days were lost to strike action under the previous...
Committee rose.