Conservative MPs urged ministers on Sept. 8, 2025, to abandon the Employment Rights Bill now that Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has resigned, saying the measure would damage growth and penalise businesses.
Shadow business spokesman Andrew Griffith wrote to the new Business Secretary, Peter Kyle, who is taking responsibility for the legislation, calling for the bill to be shelved. Griffith cited the government’s own impact assessment and said the measure — which ministers estimate could cost British businesses up to £5 billion a year — risked reducing employment and economic growth.
The Employment Rights Bill, a flagship of Rayner’s agenda that she listed among achievements in her resignation letter, is in its final parliamentary stages and is due to return to the House of Commons following amendments made in the House of Lords. The package includes provisions to strengthen workers’ rights from day one of employment and a ban on flexible zero-hours contracts, measures that have drawn praise from unions and criticism from business groups and Conservative politicians.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch criticised the bill as a "war on the private sector," while Mr Griffith urged Mr Kyle to "put the national interest first" and reconsider the legislation in the light of its projected economic effects. Griffith said the government should "look afresh at measures to promote the growth and competitiveness of the economy." He also referenced Mr Kyle’s recent comments that the government’s priority must be to "double down" on growth.
Five major business organisations — the British Chamber of Commerce, the Confederation of British Industry, the Institute of Directors, the Federation of Small Business and MakeUK — have written to peers in the House of Lords warning that the bill could have "damaging implications for the Government’s priority growth mission" and urging improvements to protect economic expansion.
Ministers face a decision as the Commons prepares to consider Lords amendments and as responsibility for the bill passes to the business department. Supporters of the bill argue it will strengthen protections for employees and address insecure work, while opponents cite the government’s impact assessment and business warnings about potential costs and effects on hiring.
The bill’s progress will be watched closely by employers, unions and opposition parties as Parliament moves to resolve differences between the two houses and determine whether the government will press ahead with the measures or alter course under new ministerial oversight.