Surveillance, broadband, zero hours: Tech policy in a UK hung Parliament

Employment law

Zero-hour contracts have become a hot subject, and are used by many British employers, but most emblematically by etailer and cloud-service provider Amazon.

A Labour-led government has pledged to ban such contracts – which make an employee available for work but do not guarantee any hours – as would the SNP. The Conservatives say it would take further steps to stop employers insisting staff can only have one zero-hours deal, but by implication would not abolish them.

The Lib Dems say that flexible contracts can work well in some cases, but adds it would create a formal right to request a fixed contract. While such changes are unlikely to affect skilled IT jobs, they could affect lower-paid ones in start-ups and the media.

The Confederation of British Industry argues the new government should commit to a flexible labour market. Although it doesn’t mention zero-hours contracts specifically, it adds: “Our flexible labour market is an asset and if it is meddled with, we risk ultimately pricing young people and the low-skilled out of opportunities.”

Who governs Britain influences tech

On policies specifically about IT, the parties that are likely to form a government have relatively few disagreements. Where they do, they are likely to cancel each other out: it is likely that the next government will include either the Lib Dems, the SNP or possibly both, which looks set to hinder the introduction of the snooper’s charter whatever happens.

There is, of course, a bigger question: whether Britain can form any government after May 7, given substantial differences between parties on other issues – including paying off the deficit, whether Britain should vote on staying in the EU, and the commissioning of new nuclear weapons systems.

For all that they agree on with regard to broadband and digital by default, the politicians’ biggest problem on May 8 may well be to find any combination of parties that can form a government.

You can read the manifestos of the parties mentioned above plus the Greens below:

Conservatives here.

Labour here.

Liberal Democrats here.

SNP here.

UKIP here.

Plaid Cymru here.

Green Party here. ®