My Lords, through this group of amendments, the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Craig, questions the wording of the Bill in a number of ways. I hope to persuade him that Clause 1 has been drafted with careful consideration of the effect that the Bill would have on implementation of flexible working.
Amendment 1 seeks to remove new Section 329(2)(ha) and replace it with new wording, which would provide the Defence Council with different powers. Those different powers would enable the Defence Council to make regulations enabling flexible rather than part-time service for enlisted regulars and for a regular to be able to request periods of unpaid leave. The noble and gallant Lord raised these points at Second Reading, and the aim, as I understand it from his remarks today, is to move away from the language of “part-time service” and replace it with “flexible service”, the underlying thought being that it would be more appropriate to label this change as another form of unpaid leave.
Regulars can already serve on a flexible basis. The options which exist are several: variable start and finish times; compressed hours; home working; and career intermissions. The first three of those are essentially a means to rearrange the working day or week, while career intermissions involve unpaid leave for up to three years for, say, a period of study. The Bill is doing something quite different from those arrangements. It is creating part-time service, as commonly understood. That is why the language used has to be the right language.
The effect of Amendment 1 would be that all flexible working arrangements for regulars would have to be provided for by way of Defence Council regulations. We regard that as unnecessary, and it would require a major rewrite of the existing terms of service regulations to deliver. I cannot agree with the noble and gallant Lord that the term “part-time” is belittling, nor do I think that it will undermine service ethos. I was grateful for the pertinent observations of the right reverend Prelate in this context.
We have to remember several key things here. We are envisaging that only a modest, albeit significant, number of our people will apply to take up the new arrangements once they are introduced; the majority of regular service personnel will continue to serve on a full-time commitment basis. Personnel whose applications to work part-time are approved will do so for a temporary period only. They will remain subject to service law at all times and will be subject to recall under defined circumstances. We need constantly to bear in mind that this measure will, par excellence, help us retain and recruit the best people for defence. Currently people choose to leave when their circumstances change and the current system cannot accommodate them. We know this from extensive surveys that we have done. One therefore has to see this in the wider context.
As for unpaid leave, as the noble and gallant Lord rightly said, regulars can already request this; for example, by asking for a career intermission. While we agree that leave is of course a well-understood service arrangement, the part-time working arrangements to be delivered under the Bill go beyond unpaid leave,
which is why they require special provision. They go beyond unpaid leave for very particular reasons. Under the unpaid leave arrangements, the individual has no formal level of protection from recall to either full-time duty or deployment other than that of being on leave. The right to apply to work part-time to be delivered under the Bill goes considerably beyond that. It will provide more certainty for the individual, affording them rights to remain on a flexible working arrangement which can be revoked, as I said, only under certain circumstances, such as a national emergency.
The noble and gallant Lord’s second amendment seeks to remove some of the language in new Section 329(2)(i) and replace it with wording to make it clear that only the regular can restrict their service to service in a particular area. I take this amendment to be driven by a view that the current language in the Bill would permit defence to place geographical restrictions on a regular’s service against their will—potentially—although I was grateful for the noble and gallant Lord’s concession that the present Government do not intend that, but I hope to persuade him that no Government could do it. This is certainly not the intention behind the existing language, nor is it its legal effect. Section 329 is there to provide protections for regular service personnel, so it is clear that these new regulations will be able to make provision for this new form of service only for the benefit of the regular, subject to the other restrictions permitted by the Bill. It cannot be imposed upon them. In fact, the Bill would ensure that service personnel are in control over whether to choose to apply to take up the new flexible working options. They would have the right to apply but there is absolutely no provision to make service personnel take up the new flexible arrangements.
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The third amendment in this group looks to probe the language in new Section 329(2)(i), which provides for the new type of geographically restricted service being introduced by the Bill. In practice, geographically restricted service means that a serviceperson may seek to limit the time they are separated from their permanent place of residence or home base. This, of course, as for all flexible working options, would be a temporary arrangement. I should also explain that this restriction is not tied to service in a particular area but prevents separation from a particular place for more than a maximum number of days or occasions each year. As such, the language in Clause 1(2)(b) is, in my submission, essential.
Amendment 5 in this group intends to remove the language referring to rights conferred on regulars under the new regulations in new Section 329(3A) by replacing it with the wording referring to agreed working arrangements. The existing wording is both appropriate and necessary. I was grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Burt, in this context. Existing Defence Council regulations made under Section 329 create legal rights. A good example is the right of a recruit to determine their service by giving notice or the right of an enlisted regular to transfer to the reserve. We expect that the new regulations resulting from the Bill will give enlisted regulars the right to apply for part-time working and/or geographically restricted service. If their application is
refused, as the noble Baroness rightly pointed out, the regular will then have the right to appeal that decision. They will not, though, have the right to work flexibly. Substantively, if an individual has a part-time application approved, they will then have a right not to attend for duty on their authorised days of absence. Therefore, we consider that the language used in the Bill is appropriate and I do not believe that it is necessary for the Bill to be amended.
Finally in this group, we have the amendment in the names of the noble Baronesses, Lady Smith and Lady Jolly, which seeks to require the Defence Council to provide information on the administration of the new flexible working arrangements that we plan to introduce from 2019, and on the existing flexible working opportunities that are already in place. It also proposes that this information should be distributed in both written and electronic formats. I agree that we must be comprehensive in our approach to communicating the availability of these new measures and how they will operate if we are to ensure their successful introduction. My officials have already published and updated documents on GOV.UK following Second Reading, which provide further details about the new flexible working arrangements. The topics covered include the application and appeals process; the body of evidence that has supported our policy-making; more details about the regulation changes we plan to introduce under secondary legislation; the effect on pay and allowances; operational capability; and some key questions and answers on flexible working. The documents also highlight the existing flexible working opportunities we provide for our people, some of which have been available since 2005. I hope that noble Lords found this helpful, or will do so if they have not yet accessed it.
With regard to ensuring that members of the Armed Forces are aware of the opportunities that these new flexible working arrangements will provide, how they will operate and how to apply, we will of course deliver a comprehensive communications campaign to members of the Armed Forces to provide them with the essential information to enable the success of these changes. This will include written and oral briefings; informal notes; internet and magazine articles; written policy guidance and advice to individuals and the chain of command; and process guides. There will be comprehensive guides for those who wish to apply.
As I mentioned at Second Reading, we have a communications plan in force already to build on the reality of the flexible duties trial. I wrote further to noble Lords in mid-July to explain how the availability of flexible working is going to be made known across the services, and I hope I assured your Lordships that the MoD has an effective communications plan in place that is well under way with a range of activities delivered through a variety of channels and mediums aimed at key stakeholders. Our plan is designed to ensure that our activities peak at key moments as we progress towards implementation of these new arrangements in 2019. As well as informing our people about the new opportunities, the communications plan aims to influence military culture and attitudes to part-time working and enable the cultural change required to ensure that flexible working is successfully
implemented. Service chiefs have been and will continue to be engaged with the process. They will oversee the cascading of communications down through their commands to ensure that service personnel are aware of the new opportunities that are being introduced. Therefore, given the amount of activity that is already under way and the additional activities that we plan to undertake, I do not believe it is necessary for the Bill to be amended. I hope, following those assurances, that the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Craig, will agree to withdraw his amendment.