My Lords, there has been a lot of very helpful and constructive discussion with noble Lords opposite and on the government Benches. We have made a lot of progress on the Bill this week, as the noble Baroness, Lady Wheeler, said so truthfully. I thank in particular my noble friend Lord Bridges for his pivotal role and for setting out some of the changes that we propose to make that reflect that dialogue. We will come on to discuss others.
I turn to why the Government are strengthening the Certification Officer. The Government have a manifesto commitment to reform the role of the Certification Officer and there is a public interest in properly regulated trade unions. This group of amendments includes government and other amendments, so I shall start by addressing the government amendments. Once the noble Lord, Lord Collins, has spoken to his amendments and others have added their views to the debate I shall respond on the whole group.
Much was made in Committee about the Bill giving the Certification Officer the same powers to investigate for all breaches that he currently has for financial matters and will shortly have for the register of members. This would enable him to act without having a complaint from a member, including on matters that he might discover in the course of his duties. It would also enable him to respond to matters brought to his attention—I suppose I should say to her attention for the future—by third parties, although he is not bound to consider these. This is a wholly reasonable power for a regulator.
We have heard concerns that the Certification Officer may receive vexatious complaints and that this could increase his workload and costs. I want to provide reassurance here. The Certification Officer, as a public authority, is required to act reasonably. We would not expect him or her to spend much time looking into representations from third parties that are groundless or vexatious. The Certification Officer cannot appoint an inspector to investigate a union on a whim. He can make inquiries, but can appoint an inspector only where there are circumstances suggesting that a union has not complied with its duties.
4.45 pm
The inspector will usually be a member of his own staff, or may be an external inspector. I recognise that there are concerns about the enhanced investigatory powers and the appointment of inspectors. That is why government Amendment 23A provides for a higher threshold for the appointment of inspectors in relation to the investigatory powers proposed in the Bill. The Certification Officer will be able to appoint an inspector only where he or she has reasonable grounds to suspect that a union has failed to comply with a duty. This is on top of two safeguards already in the Bill. He or she will be able to request documents only where there is good reason to do so and will be required to give a union the opportunity to make representations before taking any enforcement action.
The noble Lord, Lord Mendelsohn, raised concerns in Committee about the right of appeal to the Employment Appeal Tribunal in relation to the European Convention of Human Rights. I believe that I can address these important concerns. Government Amendment 31E provides for appeals against the Certification Officer’s decision on points of fact as well as the appeal on points of law. This will provide greater judicial oversight of the Certification Officer’s decisions. Unions will have a greater right of appeal to an independent tribunal and this will meet the concerns expressed by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Finally, technical Amendments 31B, 31C and 31D will ensure that there is flexibility to charge a different amount of levy from federated trade unions as distinct from trade unions. This mirrors the approach in the Bill regarding federated employer associations and employer associations.