Plans for the new Employment Rights Bill are progressing at speed with government stressing that it is working closely with business organisations to consult on the proposals.

Ministers have rejected criticism from opposition MPs about the lack of any real detail about the Make Work Pay plans and concerns from businesses that the measures will be expensive to implement, particularly for SMEs.

So far no consultation has taken place in the public domain with the government meeting with trade bodies and business groups to discuss plans. It seems unlikely that there will be a wider consultation with a move straight to draft legislation for debate in parliament.