Deregulation Bill

Yes, I am sure that that would be possible. I am looking to the Box and to my Parliamentary Priva...

Will the Minister expand what the hoops are that self-employed people will no longer have to jump...

I will come on to that in a moment. Let me just say, for the benefit of the hon. Member for Hayes...

I am pleased to speak to new clause 2 and to support amendment 72, tabled by my hon. Friend the M...

The exclusion does not amount to a blanket exemption. It applies only in hazardous operational si...

The Minister may not have understood what I was talking about or I may not have understood what h...

The exemption applies to the emergency services and the armed forces, but it is not a blanket one...

I am grateful for that clarification. Will the Minister clarify the definition of “workplace”, as...

rose—

I shall give way to the hon. Gentleman and then allow the Minister to respond.

I am a little confused. If I read it correctly, new clause 2 relates purely to Northern Ireland a...

That is an interesting point. It is important, of course, to get clarity for Sikhs in Northern Ir...

rose—

Now we shall hear from someone who has far more responsible views on health and safety in general...

It is a matter of considerable pride to me that the TUC drove forward the Health and Safety at Wo...

I share my hon. Friend’s tremendous pride in the Act, and he is right to observe that very signif...

Is there not also a danger that if legislation removes health and safety cover from self-employed...

A substantial part of my speech will deal with precisely that point, because I think it represent...

Does this not demonstrate how out of touch the Conservative party and its Liberal Democrat poodle...

That is an important point. The exact nature of the alliance that was formed will have to be left...

I agree with everything that my hon. Friend is saying. May I suggest that if the Liberal Democrat...

The idea that the Liberal Democrats might be able to save themselves a bit of shame is a novel co...

The hon. Gentleman, in his lurch to the left, seems to have forgotten that when his party was in ...

I am one-nation Labour, and one-nation Labour attempts to bring all these different strands of ou...

Does my hon. Friend agree that it serves nobody’s interests to indulge in this race to the bottom...

My hon. Friend makes an important contribution and he is right. The issue of bogus self-employmen...

Surely one of the tests for the way this Government handle the economy will come very shortly whe...

That is another important dimension. We are in danger of straying slightly from our amendment, bu...

rose—

I never cease to be delighted to hear from my hon. Friend, so I will give way to him again.

I am enjoying my hon. Friend’s speech immensely. I had the privilege of serving on the Committee ...

That is an interesting point, and it brings to mind a gentleman who was a team mate of mine at Sh...

Will the hon. Gentleman reflect on what he has just said and confirm that it is correct? Anybody ...

I do not agree with the hon. Gentleman, who is making a disingenuous point. There might be certai...

It is a privilege to speak in this debate, although I do feel we are going round in circles somew...

indicated dissent.

The hon. Gentleman is shaking his head but I am saying that, although health and safety was right...

The hon. Gentleman would have more credibility on the concerns he is articulating about the barri...

It would be an additional benefit to look at these things sector by sector, as the Better Regulat...

May I first say that I welcome the new clause relating to the Sikh community? I chair the all-par...

I used to do an awful lot of work in financial services for people who worked on construction sit...

No, it is not, but a lot of those workers who were directly employed have in recent years been fo...

Does my hon. Friend recall the words of Lord Denning many years ago when dealing with this very i...

I have been involved in some of the direct action campaigns on sites across London over the past ...

My hon. Friend is making an important contribution. He is right to say that there is a perception...

If the Government are going to legislate on the basis of hearsay and almost prejudice, they wind ...

I am following the logic of what the hon. Gentleman is saying, but he should appreciate that the ...

That worries me even more. I make this not as a party political point, but as a practical governm...

What my hon. Friend says about risk is right. In Committee, we asked time and again for a definit...

There are times when one legislates on the principle and then rolls out the practical implication...

I rise to speak in support of amendment 72 and I associate myself with the comments made by my ho...

We have only one copy of the list—that is how we have been treated today—but we shall share it. I...

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. It is potentially an incredibly hazardous occupation, for the...

Painters and decorators are not covered, but people on high wires in circuses are. This is gettin...

That is the point, is it not? The beauty of the existing legislation is that it is very clear. Ev...

My hon. Friends the Members for Derby North (Chris Williamson) and for Luton North (Kelvin Hopkin...

I fully accept what the hon. Gentleman says about the lively debate on this subject, but only one...

If I am mistaken, I apologise. I remember seeing at least two versions, but perhaps I have got th...

It may well be that there was only one piece of paper, but in Committee it was as if there was an...

Perhaps I am a victim of my own fevered imagination when it comes to the list, but I thought I re...

It may be that what the hon. Gentleman is remembering is the different approach taken by the Join...

Okay, I am prepared to accept that.

Is the maritime sector on the list? I have been advised that it is not. Was there any discussion ...

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that point. I do not remember any specific discussion...

There is a reason for the concern. It has been argued that there is not an awful lot of self-empl...

I do not have the list in front of me, but I accept what my hon. Friend says. One of the things t...

My hon. Friend the Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell) and I both worked at the TUC,...

I cannot imagine two more moderate figures in the House than my two hon. Friends. The reality is ...

It is a pleasure to speak in this important debate. I had the pleasure of working at the TUC for ...

Does my hon. Friend agree that it is highly concerning that the Health and Safety Executive has r...

Yes, indeed. One of my former colleagues at the TUC, Sir Bill Callaghan, who used to be the chair...

I am not sure whether my hon. Friend has seen the list. In the past, we have raised the risks on ...

I am sure we could find many areas where health and safety risks are not being addressed, even un...

I refer to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, which indicates that the tra...

We have had a lively debate, featuring contributions from my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford ...

The Solicitor-General says he wonders about the Labour party, but I wonder about him. Listen, if ...

Order. This is becoming a speech. It is supposed to be an intervention. We have heard the speech ...

On some of the early points that were made, this is a matter—

Will the Solicitor-General give way?

Hang on. This is a matter of exempting people in safe occupations from the Health and Safety at W...

Will the Solicitor-General give way?

No, I am going to continue for a moment.

I was asked about support from organisations with ...

rose—

I will give way in a few seconds.

Another point was raised about confusion between the work...

The Solicitor-General is making a bizarre contribution, which is adding to the confusion rather t...

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 has existed for a good period of time and done import...

Will the Solicitor-General give way?

I have one or two more points to make, and then I shall see if I can give way again. [Interruptio...

The hon. and learned Gentleman says that the provisions are clear and that there is no confusion,...

There certainly is confusion on the Opposition Benches because Opposition Members simply do not u...

I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.

With this it will be convenient to discuss the following:

Amendment (a) to new clause 1, af...

New clause 1 provides for an information-sharing gateway between Her Majesty’s Revenue and Custom...

It is fitting that for the last debate in this Parliament we should be speaking of apprenticeship...

On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Last year, I attended the Chelsea flower show. I was given two t...

I am extremely grateful to the hon. Gentleman for what he has said and the speed with which he ha...

It was perhaps remiss of me not to say how much I have enjoyed resuming our jousts across the Cha...

To be absolutely clear, the original Bill had a provision for the disclosure of information to th...

I do not agree. The hon. Lady will find that the provision is quite tightly defined, and that sho...

The Minister’s words offer some reassurance on the systems to be put in place, but not