Trade union recognition and derecognition
6.The Act gives effect to the Government’s proposals for a new system of trade union recognition, as set out in Chapter 4 of Fairness at Work. These were informed by discussions between the CBI and TUC and further developed in the light of the consultation on the White Paper, as announced on 17 December 1998. The statutory procedure for which the Act provides is intended for use only if attempts to reach a voluntary agreement on recognition fail and to act as a means of resolving the dispute without recourse to industrial action.