Britain’s opt-out from Europe’s 48-hour working week ceiling could be once again under threat. The Financial Times says it has obtained copies of a leaked report, suggesting the European Commission is going to press the UK to come into line with European law. The report to the European parliament's employment and social affairs committee is expected to call for an end to the opt-out, which allows employers to ask staff to work an average of more than 48 hours a week.

 The Financial Times reported on 4 March that it had seen a working draft of the report, by Alejandro Cercas, the Spanish socialist MEP, which said that opt-out provisions 'should be abolished when the revised directive comes into place'. Its findings conflict with European Commission proposals, which recommended that the opt-out be retained but under stricter conditions. According to the Financial Times, Mr Cercas’ draft report says the opt-out should be phased out by 2010. Derek Simpson, general secretary of Amicus, backed the call for an end to the opt-out. He said: 'More than 4 million people in Britain still work over 48 hours a week and one in five UK workers work more than 60 hours a week yet we know that working excessive hours is bad for workers' health, their family life and it is bad for business.' The TUC has been at the forefront of the campaign for an end to the UK opt-out.