The Statutory Redundancy Payment (Amendment) Bill will get its second reading today (13/3/09) in parliament. The Bill proposes to increase the statutory redundancy payment to £500. This is an increase on the current statutory redundancy payment of £350.

Some employers argue that this 43% rise in statutory redundancy payments will have a detrimental effect on their business and even that it could lead to company closures and further job losses. The Bill is supported by the country's major unions. Linsay Hoyle MP, who brought the bill, said: "Today, workers are very much facing hard times again, but state redundancy pay is so out of step with average earnings it acts as a ceiling for workers, not a floor to protect them."