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The Employment Bill would encompass the right for staff to work flexibly post-COVID. The Labour Party has urged the Government to bring forward the Employment Bill which would see staff given the choice to maintain flexible working after the pandemic. The party has accused the Chancellor of making a U-turn after Mr. Sunak expressed the view that working people should return to the office full-time. In December 2019, the Queen delivered a speech in which she outlined the Government’s proposal for a new Employment Bill. This would entail key changes such as the right to a more predictable and stable work contract, extending redundancy protection for people on maternity leave, a single enforcement body for workers’ rights and business compliance and a week’s leave for unpaid carers. Although it was expected to be announced in the Queen’s Speech earlier this year, no mention of the Bill was made. Kwasi Kwarteng, Business Secretary, stated that the Bill would be introduced when the “time was right” and “not while the pandemic is ongoing”. In May 2020, Rt Hon Stephen Timms MP, Chair of the Work and Pensions Committee, wrote to the Business Secretary, stating: The Employment Bill has been in the pipeline
