§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations he has received concerning the redundancy arrangements for female staff of the Inner London education authority; if they have been scrutinised by the Equal Opportunities Commission; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. RumboldMy right hon. Friend the former Secretary of State received two letters from the Trades Union Congress, dated 17 and 24 May, concerning the redundancy arrangements for female staff of the Inner London education authority. The second of these two letters enclosed a copy of a letter of 17 May from the Equal Opportunities Commission. The matter was also raised by the staff associations of the Inner London education authority.
The Department replied to the Trades Union Congress on 7 July, attaching a copy of the regulations on the redundancy compensation arrangements for staff of the Inner London education authority, which had been laid before Parliament that day. The Department made clear in that letter its view that the regulations did not discriminate against female employees. The entitlement to a redundancy payment in the regulations derives from the statutory framework set out in the Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act 1978. This provides that certain categories of part-time employee, regardless of their sex, are not eligible to receive redundancy compensation.