Horticulture: Recruitment

(asked on 7th February 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with the ornamental horticulture sector on seasonal worker recruitment.


Answered by
Victoria Prentis Portrait
Victoria Prentis
Attorney General
This question was answered on 14th February 2022

The Government recognises the importance of the ornamental horticultural sector to local economies and that a reliable source of seasonal labour is a key part of bringing in the harvest for the sector. I met with the Ornamental Horticulture Roundtable Group most recently in December 2021 where we discussed the skills and labour challenges the industry is facing.

Defra continues to speak regularly with the sector and other Government departments to understand labour supply and demand, including both permanent and seasonal workforce requirements, and to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the farming workforce.

Defra is specifically working with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions to raise awareness of career opportunities in the horticulture sector among UK workers. All farming businesses are encouraged to advertise roles through the Find A Job website, where they can upload and manage their vacancies.

The Government has announced that the Seasonal Worker Visa Route will be extended to 2024 to allow overseas workers to come to the UK for up to six months to harvest both edible and ornamental crops. 30,000 visas will be available this year. This will be kept under review with the potential to increase by 10,000 visas if there is clear evidence of need.

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