The Government must be ready to make changes to its new
immigration policy, or risk increased food prices, according to a
new report by a cross-party group of MPs.
The House of Commons' Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA)
Committee today publishes the conclusion to its Labour in
the Food Supply Chain inquiry, warning that the Government’s
plans to restrict UK food producers’ access to workers from
Europe risks undermining their competitiveness, as they haven’t
been given time to adapt.
With non-UK EEA (European Economic Area) nationals accounting for
the majority of workers in key sectors of the industry such as
meat processing and picking crops, the UK food and farming
industries face dramatic changes as Freedom of Movement comes to
an end on 31st December. Acknowledging that the change provides
employment opportunities for British workers, the EFRA
Committee’s recommendations to ease the transition include:
- Defra should monitor the impact of the changes on food prices
and imports and the Government should quickly adapt their policy
if it becomes clear that it is undermining British business’
competitiveness or the UK’s food security.
- Government support for re-skilling and re-training British
workers for the new opportunities within the food supply chain.
The Committee also calls on Defra to urgently publish a new
strategy detailing how it will support farmers and food producers
to develop and make affordable the new technologies the
Government hopes will replace a proportion of the sector's labour
force.
- The Government should follow its own Migration Advisory
Committee’s recommendations to place critical roles such as
veterinary nurses, meat hygiene inspectors and butchers on the
Shortage Occupation List.
- The number of visas that will be issued under the Seasonal
Workers Pilot for next year should be confirmed immediately so
farmers know whether they will have the staff needed to harvest
their crops. The Committee criticised the Government for making
policy on seasonal workers without having the data on how many
currently work in UK agriculture necessary to be able to
understand the impact their changes will have. Given this, and
the uncertainty caused by the pandemic and the end of the Brexit
transition period, it called for the cap should be set
high-enough so farmers will not be constrained in recruiting the
labour they need.
, Chair of the EFRA Committee, said:
"Leaving the EU means that the food supply sector will need to be
weaned off its reliance on European workers. This could be a
great opportunity for UK workers in the long-term, if employers
are forced to improve pay and conditions. But this will take
time.
“By leaving its plans vague and not having the proper figures to
hand, the Government is effectively turning off the tap for
employers, without giving them time to adapt. Many businesses are
now facing a cliff-edge with no clear plan about how to move
forwards. If British farmers and food producers can’t get the
workers they need, we all risk higher food prices or more cheap
imports produced to standards we wouldn’t tolerate here.
"This transition needs to be properly managed, with appropriate
provisions made to prepare British businesses- many of whom have
already had an extremely hard year. I urge the Government to
reflect on this and be ready to adapt their policy in response to
the impact it has."
