Member

I turn to Amendment 239, tabled by my noble friend Lord Hendy. Section 223 of the 1992 Act excludes from protection any industrial action act that is taken in protest at a dismissal following previous unofficial action. The removal of Section 223 would therefore mean that, if an individual breached their employment contract by taking unofficial unprotected action and had been dismissed for this breach of contract, their colleagues would be able to take protected action based on their opposition to this dismissal—providing, of course, that they have met the other conditions for protected action as set out in the 1992 Act. We do not believe it is right to allow industrial action to be called based on the dismissal of those who undertake prohibited unofficial industrial action. In the same way as there are clear protections for those taking protected industrial action, there must be clear protections for employers and the public from those taking unofficial industrial action.