Farming News - Defra: response to the publication of the John Shropshire’s Independent Review into Labour Shortages in the Food Supply Chain
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Defra: response to the publication of the John Shropshire’s Independent Review into Labour Shortages in the Food Supply Chain
Farming Minister Mark Spencer said:
"I would like to thank John Shropshire for his work on this important review and representatives from across the UK food sector for their input.
"We are committed to backing our farmers so we can enjoy the very best of British products, grow our economy and deliver the food security that we need.
"Since commissioning the review, we have held our first ever UK 'Farm to Fork' Summit at Downing Street, where we recognised the importance of ensuring the industry can access the labour it needs – both on farm and across the supply chain.
"We have confirmed, earlier than in previous years, that 45,000 seasonal worker visas will again be made available to the horticulture sector for 2024, with the potential for 10,000 further places if there is sufficient evidence of need, and contingent with improvements in worker welfare. In addition, the poultry sector has 2,000 seasonal worker visas to assist with their autumn surge in demand in both 2023 and 2024.
"We have also provided new funding this year for a £12.5m research and development fund for automation and robotics, as we know they have huge potential to improve productivity and sustainability and want to encourage investment in the technology of the future.
"I know first-hand how rewarding a career in farming can be, and we will continue to do all we can to encourage greater take up of farming and food sector roles. Already, our New Entrant Support Scheme pilot incubators are nurturing new business ideas and we are supporting the establishment of The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture to improve the uptake of key skills for those entering the industry.
"We also need to develop more attractive opportunities for UK domestic workers and make greater use of apprenticeships, and we continue to work with industry and across government on these areas.
"We will look closely at the findings of the review and will set out our response in Autumn, as the Prime Minister confirmed at the recent Farm to Fork Summit."
Background briefing:
Automation:
- We're supporting the sector to harness new opportunities through funding for the development of automatic and robotic technologies on farms, as part of our wider £270 million Farming Innovation Programme.
- Automation and robotics has huge potential to improve productivity and sustainability and by supporting some of the most promising ideas to get off the ground we are investing in a successful agriculture and horticulture industry for generations to come.
- The third round of the Farming Futures Research and Development Fund competition focusing on agriculture and robotics was launched in January and closed in March.
- The fund aims to bring together agri-food businesses and researchers to address strategic and sector-wide challenges through transformative solutions.
- Previously funded projects have included fruit scouting robots, automated vegetable harvesters and new types of fertiliser.
- Farmers, growers, businesses and researchers could apply for a share of £12.5 million, with grants for projects worth between £500,000 and £1.5 million available.
Migrant Workers:
- The Home Office provide quarterly immigration stats that are published on gov.uk: Immigration statistics, year ending September 2022. Details on temporary worker visas are also available on gov.uk.
- The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration published a review of the immigration system as it relates to the agricultural sector in December 2022.
Skilled workers:
- The food supply chain can access migrant workers, primarily through the Skilled Worker visa route and Seasonal Worker visa route.
- The Skilled Worker visa route recognises the positive impact of high-skilled migration, that can boost growth and drive the international competitiveness of the UK's high-growth innovative businesses.
- The Skilled Worker route is open to all nationals who wish to come to the UK for the purpose of working in a skilled job they have been offered. Applicants are awarded points for a job offer at an appropriate skill level, meeting the appropriate salary threshold and if they speak English to an appropriate level.
- The Skilled Worker visa route has a Shortage Occupation List. The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) is currently reviewing the Shortage Occupation List. A call for evidence was held earlier in the year https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/shortage-occupation-list-call-for-evidence-2023. Their report is due to be published in the autumn.
Seasonal Workers:
- The Seasonal Workers visa route offers visas for workers in the ornamental and edible horticulture sectors to work for up to 6 months. It has been progressively expanded since 2019 and each year improvements have been made to stop exploitation and clamp down on poor working conditions while people are in the UK. It is currently guaranteed to the end of 2024.
- 45,000 seasonal worker visas will be available to the horticulture sector for 2023 and 2024, with the potential for 10,000 further places if there is sufficient evidence of need, and contingent with improvements in worker welfare.
- The Migration Advisory Committee have announced their intention to review the Seasonal Worker visa route during 2023. Letter to Immigration Minister regarding MAC inquiry into Seasonal Worker visa (accessible) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- The government will publish summary reports of the annual surveys of workers undertaken in 2020 and 2021 very soon. In addition, a summary report of the visa route in those years will also be published.
- Scheme operators are required to abide by the Sponsor Guidance rules, which include a requirement to guarantee a minimum 32 hours pay each week.
Domestic employment:
- It is right that we encourage all sectors to make employment more attractive to UK domestic workers, which is why Defra is working with industry and DWP to raise awareness of career opportunities within the food and drink sector among UK workers.
- The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture will be officially launched later this year, strengthening support for skills and careers across the agriculture and horticulture sectors. We are currently concluding the pilot phase of new ways to support new entrants and those looking to scale up their farming businesses to develop the skills needed to be a successful farming entrepreneur.
Apprenticeship levy:
- We introduced the levy to support employers of all sizes to invest in high-quality apprenticeship training, and it is working with more than 5.4 million apprenticeship starts since 2010.
- The levy's success has also helped us grow the apprenticeship budget to £2.7 billion a year by the 2024-25 financial year. In the 2021-22 financial year, 99.6% of the apprenticeships budget was spent as employers utilised the range of high-quality apprenticeships available to help fill their skills gaps.
- We've also made it easier for large businesses to transfer their levy funds to other employers so even more businesses can benefit from taking on apprentices and grow their business, with 351 employers pledging over £22 million since September 2021. Where there are underspends from levy paying employers, these are re-allocated to fund demand for apprenticeships from smaller employers.
- We also want to ensure smaller employers have access to the apprenticeships they need to meet their ambitions, fill their skills gaps, and grow their businesses. To support this small employers who do not pay the levy are no longer limited to a maximum of 10 new apprenticeship starts, and are now able to recruit as many apprentices as their business needs.