Theresa May vows to resist Brexiteer pressure to dilute workers' rights
2 min read
Theresa May will reject any attempts to water down workers' rights after Brexit, Downing Street has said.
A spokesman for the Prime Minister said Mrs May was "committed" to maintaining current employment rules and wanted to strengthen them further once Britain quits the EU.
The comments came amid reports that pro-Leave Cabinet ministers want to use Brexit to scrap the EU Working Time Directive, which prevents staff in most jobs from working more than 48 hours a week on average.
Environment Secretary Michael Gove was said to be among those pushing for the change in a bid to slash red tape and make British businesses more competitive, and was set to make the case at a meeting of the Cabinet's Brexit sub-committee today.
The move has been widely condemned, with Labour's Barry Gardiner telling PoliticsHome it was "a worrying signal of where the Government is heading post-Brexit".
But the Prime Minister's spokesman said: "The Government position on this is clear. As part of the Withdrawal Bill, those existing EU regulations are being moved over into UK law. Going forward I've got nothing to add to the Prime Minister's stated words that she is committed to maintaining and, where possible, enhancing workers' rights."
Speaking earlier this year, Mrs May said: "The Conservatives will guarantee all rights that workers currently enjoy as we leave the European Union. I said I would use Brexit to extend the protections and rights that workers enjoy, and our manifesto will deliver exactly that."
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister's spokesman distanced Number 10 from Iain Duncan Smith's suggestion that UK firms will have to "learn to get by" after Brexit.
He said: "We've been clear in terms of the deal that we're looking for one that will have business at the centre of it.
"We are looking towards an implementation period to give certainty to business, and will secure a deal that is in the interests of British businesses and the British people."
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