Jacob Rees-Mogg to tear up workers’ rights in smaller firms to make economy ‘dynamic’

Threshold for exemption from regulations lifted from 50 to 500 workers – and to include EU ‘retained law’

Workers will be stripped of rights in firms with fewer than 500 staff, under Liz Truss’s plans to exploit Brexit to create a more “dynamic” economy.

A shock move to lift the threshold for businesses exempt from regulations from 50 to 500 workers – and possibly 1,000 employees – has raised the alarm over a bonfire of protections.

Crucially, a review – to be led by business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg – will include all EU “retained law” which the prime minister has already vowed to replace by the end of 2023.