Downing Street has dismissed accusations about “exploiting cheap labour” during the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, following claims that a security firm asked unpaid jobseekers who acted as stewards to sleep under London Bridge.
Former deputy prime minister, Lord Prescott, wrote to the Home Secretary, Theresa May, after the incident came to light yesterday, saying that he was “deeply concerned” by a situation in which the government appeared to be presiding over the creation of labour camps.
He said that he wanted her to investigate whether Close Protection UK had broken the security industry’s employment standards and also urged the government to review the company’s contract to provide stewards for the Olympics.
According to the Guardian, the firm issued “sincere apologies” for what it called the “London Bridge incident”, but insisted that it was providing 30 jobseekers and another 50 on apprentice wages, who were bussed in from Bristol, Bath and Plymouth on Saturday, with work experience.
It attested that the unpaid roles acted as a trial for paid positions for the 2012 Games, for which it also had a contract.
Apologies
Molly Prince, its managing director, told the BBC’s Today programme: “The whole situation has been exaggerated and we’re talking about two or three people complaining out of 220 staff that were supplied to the event. It was badly handled and, for that, we’ve extensively apologised. We’re not in the business of exploiting free labour.”
A spokeswoman for the Prime Minister echoed the firm’s statement. “This is a one-off…This is an isolated incident. The company has apologised.”
She responded to the criticism at Downing Street’s weekly lobby briefing, while making clear that the government would not be making any changes to its controversial Work Programme, which arranges for people on Jobseekers’ Allowance to undertake unpaid work experience.
Two jobseekers who did not want to be identified in case they lost their benefits, said that they had to camp under London Bridge overnight, had no access to toilets for 24 hours and had to change into their security uniform in the open air and in public.
Finally, after a 14-hour shift in the pouring rain on the banks of the Thames on Sunday, they were taken to a swampy campsite outside of London.
The charity, Tomorrow’s People, which set up some of the placements with Close Protection UK, said that, while it did not usually approve of unpaid work, in this case, it believed the work experience on offer was valid. But it added that it was seeking further clarification from the stewarding company as to what had taken place.
