Fifth Delegated Legislation Committee — hearing of 9 September 2026: transcript & video

00:07 - 00:31

Speaker 3

Order, order. Draft Code of Practice on the Right of Trade Unions to Access Workplaces, Regulations and Code. Draft Code of Practice on the Right of Trade Unions to Access Workplaces. Is it the wish of the committee that we take both instruments together? Minister, would you be good enough to move the first instrument.

00:31 - 02:59

Speaker 2

Thank you, Mr. Streeter, it's a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship this afternoon. I beg to move that the committee considers the Draft Trade Unions Right to Access Workplace Regulations 2026 and the Draft Code of Practice on Right of Trade Unions to Access Workplaces. These were laid before the House on the 6th of July 2026. The Employment Rights Act 2025 established for the first time in Great Britain a statutory framework through which independent trade unions and employers can negotiate agreements for access into workplaces. At present, trade unions have no general independent right of access to workplaces.

Where unions cannot reach a voluntary agreement with an employer, they can only act through individual members in a workplace, which can limit their ability to represent workers and facilitate collective bargaining. The new statutory framework enables unions to access workplaces physically and to communicate with workers both in person and digitally. It will benefit workers, employers, and trade unions alike by supporting constructive engagement, providing greater certainty, and creating clearer routes to resolution where access agreements cannot be reached. Right of access is underpinned by access principles established by the 2025 Act. Those principles recognize that trade union officials should be able to communicate effectively with workers for the statutory access purposes, that employers should take reasonable steps to facilitate access, and that access should be refused entirely only where it is reasonable in all the circumstances to do so.

The framework encourages employers and trade unions to first reach access agreements through discussion and negotiation. However, where this is not possible by negotiation, the framework enables the union or employer to refer the case to the Central Arbitration Committee, known as the CAC, for determination on whether access should be granted and on what terms. The regulations before the committee provide practical and operational detail needed for the framework to operate effectively. They establish the procedures for access requests and negotiations, set out the matters the CAC must consider when determining applications, and establish the enforcement framework where statutory access agreements are breached. The accompanying draft code of practice supports employers and trade unions on how the framework should operate in practice, including requests for access, negotiations, digital access, and enforcement.

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