Helen Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will hold discussions with Interserve on the inappropriateness of disciplinary action taken against cleaners who wrote to him requesting a living wage.

Mr David Lidington

Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials have been in contact with Interserve and have asked them to comment on allegations that Interserve cleaners had been disciplined for writing to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) in July. Interserve informed the FCO that they had instigated an investigation to establish whether the letter breached their confidentiality agreement with staff. Interserve has since confirmed that their investigation has concluded and that no disciplinary action will be taken against any of the signatories to the letter.