Recruitment trade body responds to Conservative landslide win

Commenting on news that the Conservative Government has won the General Election with a significant majority of 74 seats, Tania Bowers, Legal Counsel at the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo|http://www.apsco.org]), comments:

“At a time when the economy needs stability, APSCo welcomes the certainty that this General Election result offers. The Conservatives are celebrating a scale of success beyond what even their most optimistic supporters anticipated. Through positioning themselves as the only party willing or able to deliver the UK’s exit from Europe, they have gained seats across the North and regions – and we hope that a strong majority government will finally mark the end of the damaging Brexit deadlock. However, we are somewhat concerned that the Conservatives have drawn a line in the sand and confirmed that they will not extend the implementation period beyond December 2020. We believe this increases the risk of no free trade agreement - effectively creating a ‘no deal’ scenario – which will not be favoured by the majority of our members.”

“Although not mentioned in the party’s manifesto, since the document was published, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sajid Javid has promised a review of how the Government could further help the self-employed, adding that ‘one thing in particular’ he wants to look at is the proposed changes to IR35. We welcome this commitment whole-heartedly. Indeed, in APSCo’s own manifesto, we have called for a rethink on off-payroll working in the private sector, which we believe should, at least, be delayed pending completion of an assessment on employment status.”

“In terms of future migration policy, our members will welcome the Government’s commitment to ‘attract the best and brightest from all over the world’. Although an ‘Australian-style’ points-based system would, in theory, remove barriers for highly skilled professionals, APSCo maintains that we need a system which is sufficiently flexible to enable those without a permanent job offer to live and work in the UK. In our own manifesto, we have called for a dedicated visa route as part of the future skills-based immigration system, through which highly skilled contractors from overseas can come and support British businesses.”

“APSCo also welcomes the Conservative’s commitment to improve the Apprenticeship Levy but we believe they could do more to ensure that the system works effectively. With recent figures revealing that employers have lost £133m from Apprenticeship Levy accounts due to funds expiring, there is clearly need for reform. We have called for the system to be updated so that monies can be shared to assist the professional development of agency workers and Independent Professionals – particularly in talent-short STEM sectors such as digital, engineering and construction.”

“Overall, I believe our members will be encouraged by the policies put forward by the incoming government, and we look forward to working with the new government to ensure that the voice of the professional recruitment sector is heard at the highest levels.”

- Ends

Carly Smith
BlueSky PR
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