From April 2020, businesses in the private and charity sectors will be required to check whether contractors and freelancers need to pay income tax and national insurance, as IR35 rules are extended from the public sector following the publication of the draft finance bill yesterday.

Ex-offenders who have served longer sentences may not have to declare their past convictions to employers under new government proposals.

The new legislation would mean ex-offenders who have served sentences longer than four years would no longer be required to disclose their convictions to an employer after they have passed a ‘rehabilitation period’ without re-offending.

Currently employees are not entitled to SSP if they get paid less than the Lower Earnings Limit, currently £118 per week but the Government are looking into paying it to the lower earnings to ensure those with health problems or disabilities are treated fairly and encouraged to stay in work.

Changes are effective from April 1st 2019

The legislation to protect agency and zero hours workers, introduced today, means staff must be informed of their rights from their first day of work, including eligibility for paid and sick leave. Workers must also be given the right to request predictable hours.

The reform takes forward a majority of the recommendations made in the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices. This includes closing the ‘Swedish derogation’ loophole which allowed agency staff to be paid less than permanent employees.