Tag: Andy McDonald

The comments made by Andy McDonald, the Shadow Secretary of State for Employment Rights and Protections, on 16 December 2020.

This report shows how imbalances of power in the workplace contribute to poverty pay and huge inequalities in the workplace.

The research drives home the importance of worker representation, with trade unions the key to securing better wages and conditions. If the Government is serious about improving living standards and reducing inequalities, they must strengthen workers’ rights.

The comments made by Andy McDonald, the Shadow Employment Rights and Protections Secretary, on 10 December 2020.

The government’s failure to get a grip on the Employment Tribunal backlog has left working people waiting years for justice and undermined their ability to uphold their rights at work, leaving them unprotected at a time when they most need protections.

With so many outstanding cases, many workers might not bother to make claims and will end up denied the pay, annual leave and other rights they are entitled to.

The government must put forward a real plan to relieve this backlog without watering down rights to ensure that workers are not at the mercy of bad employers. Without rapid action, rights in the workplace will not be worth the paper they’re written on.

The comments made by Andy McDonald, the Shadow Secretary of State for Employment Rights and Protections, on 4 December 2020.

The pandemic has exposed the lack of rights and protections afforded to millions of workers. A consultation on restrictive contracts falls far short of making the changes necessary to provide all workers with rights and protections in the workplace and financial security.

It is deeply concerning that this consultation seems to be taking place instead of the introduction of the Employment Bill that the government pledged in the Queens Speech, which has been kicked into the long grass.

The comments made by Andy McDonald, the Shadow Employment Rights Secretary, on 13 August 2020.

The Government’s record on workplace safety was poor even before the pandemic, with injuries on the rise, and the past few months have exposed how a decade of cuts to enforcement and weak workers’ rights have left British workers with inadequate protection. The findings of this report are shocking if not surprising.

The Government must ensure there are adequate resources and powers for enforcement and to strengthen the rights of workers and trade unions to prevent tragic injuries and illnesses both during the pandemic and in the long-term.

The comments made by Andy McDonald, the Shadow Employment Rights Minister, on 13 August 2020.

It is wrong that pregnant women have not only lost income as a result of being wrongly sent home on sick pay rather than their full wage, but have had their maternity pay slashed as well.

Covid-19 related spells on Statutory Sick Pay should not mean women have their maternity pay cut, and the Government needs to act now, end this injustice and protect pregnant women’s rights.

Below is the text of the comments made by Andy McDonald, the Shadow Secretary of State for Employment Rights and Protections, on 15 June 2020.

Laws to protect workers are not worth the paper they’re written on if we cannot enforce them. The Government has been too slow too often in tackling the coronavirus outbreak and needs to up its game.

Workers need to be able to trust the Prime Minister when he says it is safe to return to work outside the home, and have confidence that their health and their families’ health will be protected.

Without full resourcing, there cannot be an effective system for workplace inspections, putting workers, their families and the public at risk, and undermining the national effort to fight this virus.

Below is the text of the speech made by Andy McDonald, the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, in the House of Commons on 2 March 2020.

I welcome the Minister to her place. Last week, the Court of Appeal ruled that the Government’s Heathrow expansion plan was unlawful as it failed to consider their Paris climate agreement commitments. I would like to thank those who fought the case, not the least of whom was the London Mayor, Sadiq Khan. That we must rely on environmental campaigners and the courts to protect us from illegal and environmentally destructive policies is clear evidence of the Government’s lack of real concern about the climate crisis.

The Court’s ruling was the right one. At the time of the Airports National Policy Statement, Labour warned that the plans would cause the UK to miss its climate targets. We said that the Government were failing to take account of their commitments and that this would result in legal challenges—we were dismissed, but we were right. Why did the then Transport Secretary fail to consider the Paris climate agreement in his plans for airport expansion? What legal advice did he receive? Was the advice flawed or simply ignored? The Government said that they will not appeal the decision but will focus on “overall airport expansion”. What does that mean?

If the Government accept the ruling, they should rule out airport expansion. It would be unacceptable to amend the national policy statement to include a reference to climate commitments while simultaneously paving the way for policies that will cause them to be missed. The Government should not hide behind the courts or industry; they must say what their policy now is. It is their NPS, not Heathrow airport’s. Will the Government indemnify Heathrow Airport Limited and its backers for their wasted investment if runway three does not go ahead? What are the implications for the Government’s planned almost £30 billion road building programme, which also fails to consider the UK’s climate commitments? Those plans will significantly worsen emissions, at a time when there is a legal requirement for them to fall. What legal advice has the Minister had as to whether those astronomically expensive and environmentally destructive plans are not similarly unlawful?

It is already clear that the Government’s transport policy of road building, cutting aviation tax and airport expansions, will put the UK even further off track to meet its climate targets. This is morally indefensible, and last week’s ruling means it is likely to be legally indefensible too. Will the Minister take this as a wake-up call, by ruling out climate-busting airport expansion; introducing a frequent flyer levy; and investing in public transport, electric vehicles and active travel? The future of the planet is at stake.