:00:10. > :00:18.MrSpeaker, I beg to move that legal be given to bring in a bill to make
:00:19. > :00:23.provision for a national public holiday marking the Queen's Saphire
:00:24. > :00:29.Jubilee in June this year and to establish a framework to ensure that
:00:30. > :00:34.the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and Crown dependencies
:00:35. > :00:41.appropriately commemorate this occasion and for connected purposes.
:00:42. > :00:45.On 6th February this year marked the 65th anniversary of Her Majesty the
:00:46. > :00:51.Queen's accession to the throne. This is a truly remarkable milestone
:00:52. > :00:58.for our longest serving monarch in the history of our proud nation and
:00:59. > :01:02.peoples. Her Majesty the Queen's sapphire Jubilee must surely be a
:01:03. > :01:08.cause of great celebration across the British Isles. In all corners of
:01:09. > :01:14.the kingdom, and indeed throughout Her Majesty's overseas territories,
:01:15. > :01:18.Crown dependencies, her other realms and across the Commonwealth of
:01:19. > :01:23.nations. As you will know, MrSpeaker, during Her Majesty's
:01:24. > :01:30.reign there have been three Royal Jubilees, the Silver Jubilee of
:01:31. > :01:36.1977, the Golden Jubilee of 2002, and the Diamond Jubilee of 2012. In
:01:37. > :01:40.each case the British people paid tribute to Her Majesty for her
:01:41. > :01:44.service to the nation with spectacular events in Counties,
:01:45. > :01:52.cities, towns and villages throughout these Islands. Including
:01:53. > :01:55.parades, street parties, Church services, fetes, school Assemblies,
:01:56. > :02:01.and the lighting of beacons up and down the land.
:02:02. > :02:08.National celebrations also took place, usually in June, with
:02:09. > :02:11.services of thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral, combined with
:02:12. > :02:16.military parades throughout the streets of London, and for the
:02:17. > :02:20.Diamond Jubilee a flotilla along the River Thames. Her Majesty and the
:02:21. > :02:24.Duke of Edinburgh and other members of the Royal family have appeared on
:02:25. > :02:28.the balcony of Buckingham Palace as the spectacle of a fly pass by the
:02:29. > :02:33.Royal air force, the red arrows and in the case of the golden jubilee,
:02:34. > :02:43.Concorde flew overhead. Millions of people filled the streets of London,
:02:44. > :02:48.gathering in the Mall to celebrate the Queen, singing and dancing. On
:02:49. > :02:53.each occasion the nation's spirits were lifted. Come rain or shine, the
:02:54. > :02:59.people rose to the occasion the length and breadth of the nation.
:03:00. > :03:02.The silver, golden and diamond jubilee is brought the country
:03:03. > :03:07.together in nationwide displays of affection for the Queen and the
:03:08. > :03:14.Sapphire Jubilee must surely do so again this year. It will remind us
:03:15. > :03:22.of our rich heritage, our cultural identity as part of a great British
:03:23. > :03:30.family, sharing a union of the crowns, unbroken since 1603. Whether
:03:31. > :03:37.we consider ourselves to be English, Scottish, Ulstermen, Irish, Welsh,
:03:38. > :03:43.Manx, Jersey men, Guernsey men, from the Gibraltar, from Bermuda or
:03:44. > :03:50.whichever identity within the British family we happened to call
:03:51. > :03:55.our own, the celebration of the Queen's Sapphire Jubilee must be a
:03:56. > :04:02.cause that brings each and every one of us together in honour of Queen
:04:03. > :04:09.and country. Mr Speaker, just look around the world today and see
:04:10. > :04:14.politicians as presidents. Prime ministers and leaders of nations who
:04:15. > :04:22.come and go, but here in the United Kingdom how fortunate we are to have
:04:23. > :04:27.such a dedicated mutual head of state as a constitutional monarch,
:04:28. > :04:34.who defends our laws and upholds our democracy and is the guardian of our
:04:35. > :04:38.Constitution, providing the foundations for stable and
:04:39. > :04:42.accountable government. Just as previous jubilees have been
:04:43. > :04:48.celebrated far and wide, it must surely be right that the Sapphire
:04:49. > :04:52.Jubilee is as well. In fact, I say to this House that Her Majesty's
:04:53. > :05:00.Sapphire Jubilee should be the greatest jubilee of all as no other
:05:01. > :05:09.monarch has reached 65 years on the throne. And it is inconceivable that
:05:10. > :05:13.any future king or queen will reach such an achievement for years to
:05:14. > :05:18.come. We can't let the year passed without a celebration befitting the
:05:19. > :05:22.occasion, saluting Her Majesty for all she has done for our nation and
:05:23. > :05:27.the wider commonwealth, but also to prove to ourselves once again that
:05:28. > :05:33.what unites our country and people is much greater than what divides
:05:34. > :05:38.us. Her Majesty the Queen is undoubtedly the most uniting figure
:05:39. > :05:42.of our nation. She is the fundamental component of our common
:05:43. > :05:48.British identity. As a people we shared beliefs, principles and
:05:49. > :05:54.obligations and so let us cherish our common heritage and in so doing
:05:55. > :05:57.ensure our common destiny. It is my fervent belief that the Queen
:05:58. > :06:03.exemplifies all that is great and good about our nation and represents
:06:04. > :06:10.the continuity that our forebears did so much to hand to us. Most
:06:11. > :06:18.especially the freedom of our island home that we today cherish so much.
:06:19. > :06:22.As our Queen and sovereign, Her Majesty brings steadfastness and
:06:23. > :06:26.stability to our Constitution, our parliamentary democracy and
:06:27. > :06:31.throughout our society. The importance of this dead fastness
:06:32. > :06:38.cannot be understated. Her Majesty is the single greatest flag bearer
:06:39. > :06:42.of stability and continuity. And so the Queen's Sapphire Jubilee must be
:06:43. > :06:47.a time for everyone to celebrate this great milestone in the history
:06:48. > :06:54.of our island people. Whether from England, Scotland, Northern Ireland
:06:55. > :07:01.or Wales, the Crown dependencies, the Jersey and Guernsey Islands,
:07:02. > :07:07.overseas, people of British ancestry scattered across the globe, the
:07:08. > :07:10.United kingdom taking believed will encourage Her Majesty's other rams
:07:11. > :07:19.to celebrate the Sapphire Jubilee. After all, the Queen is Queen of
:07:20. > :07:25.Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Canada, grenade, Jamaica,
:07:26. > :07:31.New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, said Lucio, Saint Vincent, the Solomon
:07:32. > :07:35.Islands. Our friends in these nations must also have the chance to
:07:36. > :07:45.celebrate as the Sapphire Jubilee is as much their celebration as it is
:07:46. > :07:51.the British are else. All the people of the United Kingdom, Northern
:07:52. > :07:55.Ireland, overseas territories and dependencies should mark the
:07:56. > :08:01.occasion of the Queen's Sapphire Jubilee with a celebration that such
:08:02. > :08:05.a significant landmark deserves. It will give councils the authority to
:08:06. > :08:09.make plans now for local celebrations. Providing the street
:08:10. > :08:16.parties, carnivals and special events to take place without the
:08:17. > :08:22.tiresome bureaucracy that can get in the way. One weekend in June could
:08:23. > :08:25.be designated Sapphire Jubilee weekend with an additional bank
:08:26. > :08:29.holiday immediately afterwards that could be a national day for a
:08:30. > :08:34.thanksgiving service. The weekend of Trooping the Colour might also be an
:08:35. > :08:39.option for the official Sapphire Jubilee celebrations. As the first
:08:40. > :08:43.ever Sapphire Jubilee of a reigning British monarch, we cannot allow
:08:44. > :08:51.this great occasion to go on celebrated. On the contrary, Mr
:08:52. > :08:54.Speaker, Her Majesty's 65th anniversary as our sovereign and
:08:55. > :08:59.head of state must be an opportunity to unite all British people,
:09:00. > :09:04.together with those of other nationalities who have made Britain
:09:05. > :09:09.the home and who might also want to celebrate with pride and patriotism.
:09:10. > :09:14.And so in presenting this bill today my hope is that it will draw
:09:15. > :09:20.attention to this highly significant event. Time may be short to arrange
:09:21. > :09:27.celebrations for June, but I believe the spirit of our nation will
:09:28. > :09:32.inspire the people to make Her Majesty's -- Her Majesty the Queen's
:09:33. > :09:41.Sapphire Jubilee a spectacular occasion that will be remembered for
:09:42. > :09:47.years to come and we will be able to demonstrate our heartfelt thanks to
:09:48. > :09:52.Her Majesty for what she has done. I commend this bill to the House. The
:09:53. > :09:58.question is that the honourable member has lead to bring in the
:09:59. > :10:03.bill. Whilst I have no objection whatsoever to the people of the
:10:04. > :10:07.United Kingdom and wider celebrating the Queen's Sapphire Jubilee, I do
:10:08. > :10:12.feel that as with most proposals, the devil is in the detail and that
:10:13. > :10:18.is why I am forced is big against this bill. I would like to press for
:10:19. > :10:24.greater detail and that we may learn from the problems created for UK
:10:25. > :10:29.workers from the most recent extra public holidays which were held on
:10:30. > :10:34.April 29 2011 to celebrate the wedding of Prince William and Kate
:10:35. > :10:38.Middleton and on June the 5th 2012 to celebrate the Queen's Diamond
:10:39. > :10:43.Jubilee. On both those occasions I was working for the NHS and I was
:10:44. > :10:56.also an elected workplace trade union rapped for Unite. Not everyone
:10:57. > :10:59.in the NHS was able to ensure the public holidays. Essential public
:11:00. > :11:04.services still have to be provided many staff were required to remain
:11:05. > :11:12.in work on those days in order to provide and urgent care. Problems
:11:13. > :11:22.arose with how these staff were to be remunerated because NHS terms and
:11:23. > :11:27.conditions under a gender -- under agenda for change says that staff
:11:28. > :11:34.are entitled to eight bank holidays and these extra bank holidays
:11:35. > :11:40.counted as nine. My NHS boss refused to pay staff working on those days
:11:41. > :11:46.at the bank holiday rate and paid them at the normal rate. I tried to
:11:47. > :11:51.negotiate a better rate of pay, but I came up against a blanket refusal
:11:52. > :11:54.from management to recognise these days as bank holidays and therefore
:11:55. > :12:05.not qualifying for the high rate of pay. Before the Diamond Jubilee
:12:06. > :12:11.celebrations are replied to -- I wrote to David Cameron. His reply
:12:12. > :12:13.was unhelpful. We were left with a situation where hard-working
:12:14. > :12:20.dedicated NHS staff who gave up their days off to provide a service
:12:21. > :12:28.were not adequately remunerated. I don't want to see this happen again
:12:29. > :12:36.with this new build. Unite revealed that some NHS trusts treated the
:12:37. > :12:42.Diamond Jubilee as a normal working day. Unite had even written to the
:12:43. > :12:49.Queen of behalf of its 100,000 members in the health service on
:12:50. > :12:53.this issue, but alas, to no avail. Additionally in April 2011, prior to
:12:54. > :12:57.the royal wedding, the Daily Mail reported that more than a tenth of
:12:58. > :13:05.employers said that they would not be giving the workers are paid day
:13:06. > :13:07.off, according to a poll by the chartered Institute of payroll
:13:08. > :13:11.professionals. Employment law experts said that workers were the
:13:12. > :13:17.victims of a lottery which depended entirely upon the wording in the
:13:18. > :13:22.contract. For example, if the contract states that the employee is
:13:23. > :13:26.entitled to 28 days holiday including all back and public
:13:27. > :13:31.holidays, the worker will be entitled to paid time off. However
:13:32. > :13:36.if the contract stated the worker was in total to 28 days holidays
:13:37. > :13:39.including eight bank and public holidays that would not infer the
:13:40. > :13:49.right to be off because the Royal wedding constitutes a nine bank
:13:50. > :13:55.holiday. -- ninth bank holiday. On that day in 2011 or 163 Debenhams
:13:56. > :14:03.stores were open but the staff did not achieve extra pay. Conversely,
:14:04. > :14:06.Tesco's stores said that people who worked the bank holiday would be
:14:07. > :14:11.paid up to three times the normal rate. Following the royal wedding
:14:12. > :14:16.holiday where some employers fail to give the day off, the TUC rate to
:14:17. > :14:21.this government to add a provision to holiday entitlement to take
:14:22. > :14:26.account of any special bank or public holidays, but sadly no such
:14:27. > :14:31.provision was made. And with that in mind, one way to avoid this
:14:32. > :14:33.situation arising every time that an extra public holiday is announced
:14:34. > :14:39.would be to increase the number of bank holidays from eight up to nine
:14:40. > :14:43.per year, with the extra bank holiday to be used to celebrate a
:14:44. > :14:49.significant occasion that year, and that occasion to be determined by
:14:50. > :14:54.Parliament. As I have stated when I rose to speak, I think it is right
:14:55. > :14:58.that we should celebrate the Queen's record of an amazing 65 years of
:14:59. > :15:04.long service, but what I'm asking for is more clarity to enable
:15:05. > :15:07.employers and employees to reach a better understanding of the
:15:08. > :15:14.practicalities of arranging an extra public holiday. Most importantly on
:15:15. > :15:18.rates of remuneration for those emergency workers who give up their
:15:19. > :15:24.time so that others may enjoy the day off and the celebrations. I will
:15:25. > :15:28.end by asking the questions. Will this bill specify how this holiday
:15:29. > :15:33.should be characterised and what rates are paid those who have to
:15:34. > :15:37.work on the date should receive? How will the bill ensure that all
:15:38. > :15:42.employers participate and give staff the day off without resorting to the
:15:43. > :15:47.use of loopholes? And will the government now take heed of the TUC
:15:48. > :15:52.recommendation that provision should now be made to workers was not
:15:53. > :15:57.holiday entitlement to take account of additional public holidays? Thank
:15:58. > :16:07.you. The question is that the honourable member have leave to
:16:08. > :16:13.bring in the bill. I think the ayes have it. Who will prepare and bring
:16:14. > :16:21.in the bill? Sir Julian Brazier, Mr Douglas Carswell, Tom Elliott,
:16:22. > :16:29.Michael Gove, Kate Hoey, Norman Lamb, Angus Brendan McNeill, Albert
:16:30. > :16:56.Owen, Gavin Robinson, Michael Tomlinson and myself, sir.
:16:57. > :17:02.I beg leave to ask the question standing in my name on the order
:17:03. > :17:06.paper. My Lords, according to the latest data from the office for
:17:07. > :17:13.national statistics, income inequality in the UK is at its
:17:14. > :17:18.lowest level since 1986. The key to economic success and to reducing
:17:19. > :17:22.inequality is to improve activity which determines living standards in
:17:23. > :17:25.the long run, that's why the Government has established a
:17:26. > :17:27.national productivity investment fund and published a Green Paper on
:17:28. > :17:30.industrial strategy highlighting