Downing Street’s claim that it had delivered “the single biggest upgrade of working rights in a generation” tells you almost everything about Labour’s current condition. The government was not announcing new legislation – it was just confirming that it would reverse Lords amendments weakening the bill it introduced last year.
The amendments, welcomed by business lobbies, had stripped out protections such as “day one” rights against unfair dismissal, and softened restrictions on fire-and-rehire. Reinstating the original provisions is the bare minimum that could be expected of a Labour government. But instead the mundane is spun by Downing Street as a transformative win.
