Select committee: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Recommendation 12
Third Report - The UK’s new immigration policy and the food supply chain
Published 22 Dec 2020
Paragraph 68
Addressed to Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Labour in the food supply chain All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
We welcome the announcement in November of additional Government funding for new technology, and call upon Defra to publish a strategy within 6 months setting out how it will work with technology providers and the food supply chain to ensure our farming and food production sectors can help develop and take advantage of the latest technological advancements. The Government should monitor the speed at which the mechanisation of roles currently done by seasonal labour becomes economic for all farmers, including small farmers, and this should be reflected in the setting of the cap on the Seasonal Workers Pilot.
From: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, Third Report - The UK’s new immigration policy and the food supply chain (HC 231), paragraph 68, 22 December 2020
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 14 May 2021 (deadline 22 February 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The Government says it agrees with the Committee on carefully monitoring the effect of the new immigration system on food supply chain labour, and sets out policy developments and continued work in response.
- On food prices, it says establishing "a credible link between the price of food and labour supply is not always possible", but Defra is "committed to working throughout 2021" to scrutinise relevant labour supply data.
- On fees, it states the current UK visa fee schedule "offers good value", and that the Home Office keeps fees under review. It notes the Home Office announced its final decision on the Shortage Occupation List recommendations on 4 March.
- On seasonal workers, it says the 2021 Seasonal Workers Pilot, with 30,000 visas, will operate in support of the edible horticulture sector only, with two additional pilot operators being established.
- On automation, it commits to Defra leading a review into automation in horticulture this year, with further details "published in the Spring".