The Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Amendment and Revocation) Regulations 2026

This legislation amends United Kingdom employment law.

The main focus of these amendments centers on refining the rules and regulations governing trade unions and their activities, along with related employment matters.

This standard introductory clause confirms that the law has been enacted by the authority of the UK Parliament, following agreement by both the House of Lords and the House of Commons, under the sanction of the Monarch.

The first part of the Act introduces specific changes directly related to the procedures for trade union ballots and general regulations concerning trade unions.

This section deals with the statutory requirements surrounding industrial action ballots conducted by trade unions.

The Act amends Section 2 of the Trade Union Act 1984, which governs how trade unions must conduct ballots to authorize industrial action, such as strikes or other forms of protest.

This subsection modifies the list of parties who must be notified regarding an industrial action ballot.

It adds a requirement to notify the employer who employs the majority of union members affected by the potential action, in addition to the primary employer concerned.

Similarly, this amendment extends the recipient list for information concerning the ballot results or authorization process, ensuring the employer employing the majority of relevant union members receives notification.

This maintains consistency by again updating notification requirements under subsection (7) of the original Act, ensuring the specified employer group is included in communications regarding the industrial action ballot.

This changes what information must be included in the notice sent to the Certification Officer.

It now requires stating whether the ballot was organized and conducted by the Certification Officer (previously referred to as the Commission).

This implements the same notification requirement update across subsection (11) of the 1984 Act, ensuring the employer of the majority of affected union members is kept informed regarding the ballot proceedings.

This section addresses the procedures for conducting ballots that seek authorization to continue industrial action that has already commenced.

The Act amends Section 6 of the Trade Union Act 1984, which covers the requirements for balloting union members if a trade union wishes to continue industrial action.

Similar to the preceding section, this updates the list of parties who must be informed about the continuation ballot, requiring notification to the employer responsible for the majority of union members currently participating in the action.

This amends subsection (6) to ensure the employer employing the majority of participating union members receives the required statutory notifications regarding the continuation ballot.

This consistently updates subsection (7) to include notification to the employer who employs the majority of the union members actively engaged in the continuing industrial action.

This section concerns financial matters related to the expenses incurred by trade unions when conducting ballots.

The Act modifies Section 16 of the Trade Union Act 1984, which details the financial provisions, including reimbursement or entitlement to payments, associated with holding statutory ballots.

This substitutes references to the 'Commission' with 'Certification Officer' in relation to financial arrangements for ballots conducted by the Officer, reflecting delegated or updated administrative responsibility for handling ballot payments.

This substitution clarifies that the Certification Officer, rather than the former Commission, now handles the relevant responsibilities described in this subsection concerning ballot payments.

This amendment ensures that communication regarding payments and compliance related to ballots is directed to or managed by the Certification Officer.

The change here specifies that the Certification Officer is responsible for determining or overseeing the matters described under subsection (6) concerning union ballot payments.

The second part of the Act introduces miscellaneous amendments that modify various sections of the primary Employment Rights Act 1990 statute.

This section establishes a right for union learning representatives to take time off work for specified learning activities.

Legislation is inserted after Section 168 of the Employment Protection Act 1975 to create a specific right for trade union learning representatives (TULRs) to be granted time off work.

The definition of an offense related to these representatives is also updated to include TULRs.

Schedule 5 of the Employment Protection Act 1975 now governs this new right to time off.

Specifically, the schedule is modified to explicitly include 'learning activities' alongside 'training activities' as valid reasons for taking the time off.

Section 100(2)(a) of the Employment Rights Act 1990, which relates to protection from detriment, is amended to include protection for employees taking time off for the newly established role of the trade union learning representative.

This section introduces administrative changes regarding how trade unions merge or change their fundamental structure, impacting their certification.

The Act amends Section 12(1) of the Trade Union (Amalgamations, &c.) Act 1914, which grants the Registrar power to cancel a union's registration certificate if an amalgamation or transfer of engagements occurs.

The Registrar's duty to rescind the certificate is now conditional; it becomes mandatory only if the specific procedural requirements outlined in this section are satisfied.

A new subsection (1A) outlines the specific conditions precedents to the Registrar rescinding the certificate.

These conditions require evidence that a member ballot favoured the merger/transfer, that the official documents were submitted to the Registrar on time, and that the union leadership formally declared all procedural requirements under existing laws were met and complied with.

This updates references within subsection (2) to refer to the newly inserted subsection (1A) as well as the original subsection (1).

It also clarifies that 'the instrument' refers specifically to the instrument of amalgamation or transfer.

Section 13, concerning the legal consequences when a certificate is rescinded, is revised to reference the new conditional power under Section 12 and clarifies that the responsible officer is the 'Registrar of Trade Unions'.

This final part contains general administrative and commencement provisions for the Act.

This section establishes the official short title of the Act, defines key terms used throughout the legislation, and sets out when the provisions come into legal effect.

The official short title is confirmed as the Employment Rights Act 1990.

Furthermore, the Act must be interpreted in conjunction with, and as part of, the Employment Protection Act 1975, the Trade Union Act 1984, and the existing Employment Rights Act 1990 legislation.

This defines 'the Certification Officer' for the purposes of this Act, identifying this role as the official appointed under Section 10(1) of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.

The operational commencement date for all provisions within this Act is set as the end of the two-month period following the day the Act receives Royal Assent.