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The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report.

1. Article 1 of the Convention. In its previous report, the Committee had requested the Government to keep it informed of progress made in adopting draft regulations pursuant to section 3 of the Employment Relations Act, 1999, prohibiting blacklisting on the basis of union membership or activities. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government that draft regulations for consultation were published in February 2003 to ban the compilation, use or dissemination of blacklists of trade unionists and that the Government intends to finalize the draft regulations, ready for their prompt introduction, should evidence emerge of such lists being drawn up or there being a demand for them. The Committee notes that the Government indicates that its consultations did not reveal any evidence that blacklisting was reappearing, and that it considers it would be inappropriate to regulate against a practice when there is no evidence to suggest that the problem has existed for over a decade. Nevertheless, the Government stresses that it is not complacent in this matter and, by finalizing the regulations and holding them in reserve, will be able to act swiftly should the need arise.

The Committee recalls its view that practices involving the "blacklisting" of trade union officials constitute a serious threat to the free exercise of trade union rights and that governments should take stringent measures to combat such practices (see General Survey on freedom of association and collective bargaining, 1994, paragraph 211) and expresses the hope that the Government will take the necessary steps to ensure that blacklisting of trade unionists may not become a problem in the United Kingdom in the future by ensuring that the practice is prohibited. The Committee requests to be kept informed of developments in this regard in the Government’s future reports.