Clegg distances himself from shares for rights policy
DEPUTY prime minister Nick Clegg yesterday sought to distance himself from the coalition government’s employee shareholder policy introduced by fellow Liberal Democrats Vince Cable and Jo Swinson just nine months ago.
Calling the scheme, which allows employees to surrender some of their rights in return for shares in the company that they work for, a wasteful “pet project,” Clegg said his party would have chosen to increase the tax-free allowance and give those on low incomes an extra £140 per year instead.
New figures suggest that the scheme may be having a minimal effect. A freedom of information request to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills revealed that just 19 inquiries have been made about the scheme since July.