At a Glance
On 8 April 2026, the Government launched a call for evidence on the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (commonly referred to as ‘TUPE’). The Government previously committed to strengthening the rights and protections for employees under TUPE as part of its broader Plan to Make Work Pay and this call for evidence will inform the development of policy options to reform TUPE.
The call for evidence is open for responses until 1 July 2026.
What is TUPE?
As a reminder, TUPE provides employment protections for employees where a business is transferred between entities or there is a change in service provision. For example, the regulations impose a duty to inform and consult with appropriate employee representatives and restrict the changes that can be made to employees’ terms and conditions of employment in connection with a TUPE transfer.
Rationale for Reform
The Government announced in May 2024 as part of its Plan to Make Work Pay that it wished to “strengthen the existing set of rights and protections for workers subject to TUPE processes” and in October 2024, the Government’s Next Steps paper confirmed that a call for evidence would be launched to examine the regulations.
On 8 April 2026, the Government launched a call for evidence to kick start the development of policy options to reform TUPE. Its stated policy objectives are to support growth through facilitating smoother mergers and acquisitions, whilst ensuring employees’ rights and benefits are protected and TUPE is as efficient as it can be. The aim is to create a system that is easy for businesses to comply with and for employees to understand.
As part of this broad evidence-gathering exercise, the Government is inviting views on a range of questions, including:
- Whether the consultation requirements and protections for employees (including in respect of collective agreements and pension rights) are adequate
- The costs of TUPE transfers for businesses
- What aspects of the TUPE process work well and where issues arise
- The framework governing variation of terms and conditions of employment in connection with a TUPE transfer
- Whether the regulations have resulted in any unintended consequences for individuals with protected characteristics or from different socioeconomic backgrounds
Next Steps
It remains unclear to what extent the Government intends to modify the TUPE framework, but it’s clear that some changes are anticipated as part of its wider programme of reform. This could be an opportunity for the Government to clarify or streamline some of the complexities of the regime, and to address the interaction of the TUPE framework with other reforms under the Employment Rights Act 2025. For example, further complexity may arise through the interaction of the TUPE protections for terms and conditions of employment and restricted variations under the fire and rehire changes.
We await the Government’s response after the call for evidence closes on 1 July 2026 and the Government has committed to launching a further consultation on any proposed legislative changes in due course, although the timeline for this is currently unknown. Responses to the call for evidence can be submitted online here.
For further information on the latest developments, please visit our Reform Hub.
