Umbrella company contractors will now have the chance to air their views on the notorious IR35 legislation on a website launched by Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister.
Your Freedom was launched on 1st July in an attempt to listen to the public’s views on various laws and regulations in an attempt to abolish unnecessary legislation. The public have been asked to nominate which laws they would like to see abolished in three main areas which are:
- Restoring civil liberties
- Repealing unnecessary laws
- Cutting business and third sector regulations
People are also invited to submit ideas as well as vote on other suggestions which have been made by the public. This website is expected to be available until the autumn which is when the relevant departments will assess the suggestions and include those approved in a new Freedom Bill which will be launched later in the year.
Many umbrella company contractors are thought to have contributed to the 2205 ideas which were submitted in the first day alone, whilst 18,000 votes and 7419 comments were made. The IR35 legislation has been fought against for many years by contractors as a law that is unclear and unfair in its treatment of contractors and freelancers.
The coalition government has pledged to look at all suggestions from the British public in an attempt to build trust, as well as encouraging enterprise to develop without the constraints of stifling regulation.
Ministers from Whitehall will be able to post their comments to suggestions from the public, followed by a sifting process to decide which will be included in the Freedom Bill. There are many contentious areas which are expected to receive attention such as a repeal of the hunting ban as well as a repeal of the Human Rights Act although it is unlikely that legislation which provokes such strong feeling as these will be included in the final Bill.
