Business and Other Briefings
BIS: As part of the Focus on Enforcement campaign, the Government is urging companies, particularly SMEs to feed in their experiences of fire safety enforcement by fire safety officers who visit premises to ensure compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (by 31 August 2012). The Government is also interested to hear where companies get advice on fire safety compliance.
CLG: Communities Secretary Eric Pickles recently highlighted government proposals to scrap restrictions that put off start-up businesses from temporarily using empty high street shops that can help attract shoppers back to more family friendly town centres. Temporary or 'pop-up' shops often utilise vacant high street premises until a permanent tenant can be found.
FSA: The Financial Services Authority has announced that 7 additional banks have volunteered to review their sales of interest rate hedging products to SMEs. Allied Irish Bank (UK), Bank of Ireland, Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks (part of the National Australia Group (Europe)), Co-operative Bank, Northern Bank and Santander UK have confirmed that they will participate in the review of their sales of these products and the redress exercise, on the same basis as those larger banks.
TUC: A recent TUC survey reveals that despite laws which say employers must give their staff personal protective equipment (PPE) free of charge, more than 1 in 5 workers are being forced to pay for it out of their own pocket. 8.9% were made to pay for any replacement equipment if their original PPE was damaged.
It is illegal for an employer to charge for any safety equipment. The law also says that every employer has to ensure that any PPE provided to their employees is maintained (including replaced or cleaned as appropriate) in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.
DWP: Young disabled people are set to benefit from a new wage incentive which was launched recently by the Minister for Disabled People, Maria Miller. Employers can now claim a payment of up to £2,275 – when they recruit a young disabled person through Work Choice, a specialist programme that gives severely disabled people tailored employment support.
