Employment Bill [Lords]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that intervention. As I was saying, the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 was, of course, a controversial and contested piece of legislation. It is one of the flagship polices introduced by Labour since 1997. I welcome the provisions that will strengthen the enforcement of the regulations. The truth, however, is that other than the drip, drip of employment legislation that we have heard about, Britain has the most restrictive labour and employment laws in Europe. Trade unions in Britain have the fewest rights of those in any country in Europe. As has been said, our right to be members of trade unions and to take part in trade union activity dates from less than 100 years ago, when the Labour party was created. One of the first steps that the initial 29 Labour MPs took was to drive through a private Member's Bill to overturn the House of Lords decision on Taff Vale. We have already heard references to Lord Wedderburn and other leading employment experts, who have regularly articulated that our rights in labour law now are worse than they were 100 years ago. We should not be proud of that. Of course, new laws are not the only way of dealing with exploitation in the workplace. If we look at history and at the situation now, we see that one of the most effective ways of fighting a cause in the workplace is to join a trade union. We know that trade union members earn significantly more than non-trade union members. They have better pay, better pensions and better health and safety in the workplace. It is appropriate that those of us in this place should make it very clear that, as a public policy matter, we believe that trade unions are a force for good in society. One reason for that is that we have to recognise the huge imbalance of power in society. In particular, we must recognise the huge imbalance of power in the workplace between the employer and employee. I welcome the work that has led more than 100 MPs to sign early-day motion 1604, which calls for the Bill to be amended to include aspects of the Trade Union Rights and Freedoms Bill. We have heard already from my hon. Friend the Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell) about that Bill. I welcome the clause that lifts restrictions on trade unions and the amendment of the rules on the exclusion or expulsion of individuals on the grounds of membership of a political party. The clause is in the Bill because of active attempts by fascists in Britain to infiltrate trade unions, when, of course, fascist ideology runs counter to the beliefs of trade unions. If we consider the activities of fascists who have gained power throughout the world, we see that trade unionists are one of the first groups that they target, victimise, exploit, jail and kill. Trade unions are saying that they do not feel that it is reasonable that they should be forced to take people who are members of fascist parties into their membership, because they know that the only reason those organisations target them is to undermine their core values and beliefs. We need to look more broadly at trade unions and their rule books. Britain has the most restrictive labour laws in Europe, which means that we have the most rules that govern how trade unions behave. The Conservatives, who were in power for 18 years, introduced most the legislation that led to the regulation of trade unions. It is interesting to hear Conservative Members talk about burdens on business, because they put excessive burdens on trade unions. Trade unionists tell us that the rules under which they are required to operate are not just excessively bureaucratic and expensive, but make it practically impossible for them to carry out their activities lawfully—the activities their members ask them to carry out. The Trade Union Rights and Freedoms Bill proposed simplification of the law on trade unions, because it is not appropriate that the state should lay down in such detail the requirements to be followed every time a trade union takes a ballot on industrial action. Current provisions make it impossible, in effect, for legal industrial action to take place. However, most cases are not examined in detail; evidence is not examined in detail by a body such as a court or tribunal. Those who have had to take part in such processes would not dispute the fact that existing legislation is excessively prohibitive.