On the regulation front, the CBI wants the Government to introduce a sustainable employment test to ensure that any future employment laws help, rather than hinder, the creation of new jobs.

Strikes damage economic growth and inconvenience the public. At a time of fragile recovery, strikes should require a higher bar of support. The CBI is therefore calling for changes to rules around ballots to ensure that industrial action can only go ahead if 40% of the balloted workforce support it, as well as a simple majority of those voting. This would prevent strikes going ahead based on a relatively small turnout of particularly active members.

In addition, the consultation period for collective redundancies should be shortened from 90 days to 30 days to reduce uncertainty for staff and allow employers to reshape their workforces swiftly to respond to significant falls in demand.