Member

I reiterate the Government’s commitment to backing collective bargaining and to working with stakeholders to build on the progress made by this Bill. We are engaging stakeholders currently, including the groups named in this amendment, and will continue to do so. As my noble friend Lord Barber made clear, this has to be a learning process for all involved. He also rightly made the point that, particularly in areas of low pay and exploitation, this could help prevent a race to the bottom. As my noble friend Lady O’Grady said, there are other benefits for those who currently feel locked out and powerless about decisions that affect them. The example she gave of her experience of learning her skills on the shop floor as a representative could be multiplied thousands of times across workforces. There are other advantages to having that collective bargaining underpinning.