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Convention on Domestic Workers

Secondary information

Type

Parliamentary proceeding

Reference

530 c269-93WH 

Session

2010-12

Department

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Chamber / Committee

Westminster Hall

Proceeding contributions

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c289WH (Link to this contribution) I am not Slough South East; I am all of Slough.

Ed Davey | 530 c288-9WH (Link to this contribution) Of course I will come to that point as it is central to my speech, but let me say for the record tha...

Show all contributions (65)

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c289-90WH (Link to this contribution) As I understand it, the Act does apply to private domestic workers, with the exception of section 51...

Ed Davey | 530 c289WH (Link to this contribution) I apologise to the hon. Lady. Let me explain the position in detail. Article 13 of the convention r...

Nia Griffith | 530 c288WH (Link to this contribution) If the issue is about enforcement and we already have existing legislation, what is the problem with...

Ed Davey | 530 c291WH (Link to this contribution) I am not suggesting that, because health and safety inspectors do not raid people's homes. I ask co...

Nia Griffith | 530 c290WH (Link to this contribution) Does the Minister not think that it would be highly desirable for the workplace to be made safe? Doe...

Ed Davey | 530 c290WH (Link to this contribution) I have to tell the hon. Lady that domestic workers are excluded from part I of the Act, which covers...

Jim Sheridan | 530 c291WH (Link to this contribution) The Minister is a decent man, and I do not believe that he is reading out the script he has been giv...

Ed Davey | 530 c290-1WH (Link to this contribution) I will come to the evidence for not applying the provisions in a second, but if I may, I will contin...

Ed Davey | 530 c292-3WH (Link to this contribution) I do not have such an example at my fingertips. I will write to the hon. Lady. However, she fails to...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c292WH (Link to this contribution) Before the hon. Gentleman leaves health and safety, will he answer the first question I asked him? I...

Ed Davey | 530 c291-2WH (Link to this contribution) Of course, those would be covered if we went down this route. What would be the benefit of extendin...

Nia Griffith | 530 c291WH (Link to this contribution) Is the Minister not aware of the many local authorities and private care companies that provide care...

Ed Davey | 530 c291WH (Link to this contribution) Indeed. That is why previous Governments, understandably, did not choose to extend domestic law in t...

Andrew Selous | 530 c291WH (Link to this contribution) I am glad that my hon. Friend has mentioned the personalisation agenda. Does he agree that many of o...

Ed Davey | 530 c284WH (Link to this contribution) Will the hon. Lady explain why the previous Government never extended the working time directive to ...

Nia Griffith | 530 c284-5WH (Link to this contribution) We could have an entire debate on the working time directive, but I am not going to get too distract...

Grahame Morris | 530 c282-3WH (Link to this contribution) I am grateful for my hon. Friend's intervention. The point made by the hon. Gentleman is a scare tac...

Nia Griffith | 530 c283-4WH (Link to this contribution) I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Slough (Fiona Mactaggart) on securing the debate. She h...

Ed Davey | 530 c285WH (Link to this contribution) The hon. Lady argues that the convention would not require health and safety legislation to be exten...

Jim Sheridan | 530 c285WH (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend should not be so modest. The Leader of the Opposition has said clearly that mistakes ...

Nia Griffith | 530 c285WH (Link to this contribution) Absolutely, particularly on issues that have taken years of discussion to get to our current positio...

Grahame Morris | 530 c282WH (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friends have indicated that many domestic workers feel intimidated, and are unwilling to res...

Jim Sheridan | 530 c282WH (Link to this contribution) Does my hon. Friend share my sadness at the suggestion of the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshir...

Andrew Selous | 530 c282WH (Link to this contribution) On the minimum wage, does the hon. Gentleman agree that we do not need to sign the ILO convention be...

Nia Griffith | 530 c286-7WH (Link to this contribution) I thank my hon. Friend for her excellent explanation. Let us move on to recommendation 20, which sta...

Ed Davey | 530 c287-8WH (Link to this contribution) I congratulate the hon. Member for Slough South East (Fiona Mactaggart) on securing a debate on this...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c288WH (Link to this contribution) The Minister says that most domestic workers benefit from paid annual leave.

Andrew Selous | 530 c288WH (Link to this contribution) They should.

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c288WH (Link to this contribution) I am sure that they should. I want to know how the Minister knows that most actually do, because in ...

Ed Davey | 530 c288WH (Link to this contribution) This is a question of the law. The law says that those workers are entitled. Signing the convention ...

Nia Griffith | 530 c285WH (Link to this contribution) It is certainly not my position. Article 13 states that appropriate measures should be taken,"““with...

Ed Davey | 530 c286WH (Link to this contribution) Is it therefore the Labour party's position that the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 should b...

Nia Griffith | 530 c286WH (Link to this contribution) It is appropriate to endorse what is in the convention. The convention seeks to sort the issue out a...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c286WH (Link to this contribution) The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 does apply to domestic workers. The only exception relate...

Ed Davey | 530 c277WH (Link to this contribution) Before my hon. Friend moves on, his point about the number of countries that are members of the ILO ...

Jim Sheridan | 530 c277WH (Link to this contribution) The hon. Gentleman is right to identify the protection that workers have in this country. Does he un...

Andrew Selous | 530 c277WH (Link to this contribution) I am not sure that the convention actually gives them any particular rights that they do not have un...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c276-7WH (Link to this contribution) Canada, for example, said that it would find the convention difficult to ratify. I read the whole of...

Nia Griffith | 530 c276WH (Link to this contribution) Is the hon. Gentleman saying that, if we have something that is better than an ILO convention, we sh...

Andrew Selous | 530 c276WH (Link to this contribution) If the hon. Lady will allow me to develop my argument a little further, she will understand what I a...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c274-5WH (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is absolutely right. One of the powerful things about the ILO is that it is tripartit...

Andrew Selous | 530 c275-6WH (Link to this contribution) I congratulate the hon. Member for Slough (Fiona Mactaggart) on securing this important debate. I, t...

Jim Sheridan | 530 c274WH (Link to this contribution) Certainly we need to break the coalition's ““Upstairs, Downstairs”” mindset in relation to workplace...

Jack Dromey | 530 c279-80WH (Link to this contribution) The law is not properly enforced but nor are our Government giving leadership. What message does it ...

Grahame Morris | 530 c280WH (Link to this contribution) It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Howarth. On the record, I thank my hon. Friend...

Catherine McKinnell | 530 c281WH (Link to this contribution) Does the hon. Gentleman share my concern that the Government's position seems to be at odds with the...

Grahame Morris | 530 c281WH (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend makes a good point well. I completely agree with her. The decision to abstain has tw...

Andrew Selous | 530 c278WH (Link to this contribution) This is a new convention that is being signed, so neither the hon. Gentleman nor I know what will ha...

Speaker | 530 c278WH (Link to this contribution) Order. It may be of assistance to those present if I point out that I intend to call the Opposition ...

Jack Dromey | 530 c278-9WH (Link to this contribution) First, I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Slough (Fiona Mactaggart) for securing the deb...

Andrew Selous | 530 c279WH (Link to this contribution) The hon. Gentleman has read out an appalling list of employer abuses, but does he not agree that the...

Andrew Selous | 530 c277-8WH (Link to this contribution) I am grateful to the Minister for giving us those points of detail, so that they are now on the reco...

Gregory Campbell | 530 c278WH (Link to this contribution) The hon. Gentleman is outlining potential consequences for the United Kingdom. Is there any evidence...

David Simpson | 530 c271WH (Link to this contribution) I congratulate the hon. Lady on securing this very important debate. Leaving aside the fact that the...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c269-71WH (Link to this contribution) I know that it is customary to praise the occupant of the Chair at such moments as these, Mr Howarth...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c272-3WH (Link to this contribution) Signing the convention would make a difference in three ways. The first is the signal it would send ...

Gregory Campbell | 530 c273WH (Link to this contribution) Does the hon. Lady agree that the Government's position appears to be that signing the convention wo...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c271-2WH (Link to this contribution) To my surprise, when I conclude my remarks, I am going to read a quote from the Centre for Social Ju...

Ed Davey | 530 c272WH (Link to this contribution) The hon. Lady has an excellent record on campaigning against human trafficking and slavery. How woul...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c274WH (Link to this contribution) That organisation should be better at dealing with the issue, but I am not sure that it is easy to d...

Fiona Mactaggart | 530 c273-4WH (Link to this contribution) The hon. Gentleman is right. I think that we all find what has happened to be depressing. As well a...

Jim Shannon | 530 c274WH (Link to this contribution) I congratulate the hon. Lady on bringing this most important matter to Westminster Hall for debate. ...

Andrew Selous | 530 c277WH (Link to this contribution) I am making a slightly different point. Some countries ratified the convention, but then said that t...

Subjects

Employment Human rights International cooperation Domestic service Standards Treaties Visas International Labour Organization

Link

View this Parliamentary proceeding on www.publications.parliament.uk