HL Deb 17 May 1973 vol 342 cc912-3

[No. 2]

Clause 1, page 2, line 2, at end insert "and where a child is employed in pursuance of arrangements so made, then so much of any enactment as regulates the employment of young persons (whether by excluding them from any description of work, or prescribing the conditions under which they may be permitted to do it, or otherwise howsoever) and would apply in relation to him if he were of an age to be treated as a young person for the purposes of that enactment shall apply in relation to him, in and in respect of the employment arranged for him, in all respects as if he were of an age to be so treated".

LORD BELSTEAD

My Lords, I beg to move that this House doth agree with the Commons in their Amendment No. 2. The effect of the additional words of this Amendment is to apply the statutory provisions regulating the employment of young persons to children employed in schemes of work experience. The result is that if a pupil is employed in breach of any of these provisions the employer will be guilty of an offence, and if the pupil suffers injury as a result of the infringement he will have a right of action against the employer for damages for breach of statutory duty. This simply reproduces the situation as it affected pupils of 15-plus employed in schemes of work experience before the school leaving age was raised on September 1 last. Those persons were then young persons by law and had the rights and remedies of young persons. Pupils of that age will continue to have those rights and remedies, although now they are in law children.

I think your Lordships would wish me to point out that the Bill that was passed by your Lordships did not in fact produce this result, because the passage beginning at line 21, on page 1 did not apply the statutory provisions regulating the employment of young persons but merely prohibited the making of arrangements which would have been contrary to them. This was something which I think it is fair to say we did not spot as the Bill was going through in your Lordships' House; the House of Commons did, and put the matter right.

Moved, That this House doth agree with the Commons in the said Amendment.—(Lord Belstead.)

On Question, Motion agreed to.