Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2023 to Question 120892 on Agriculture: Seasonal Workers, what the guaranteed minimum number of hours for seasonal migrant workers offered by each seasonal worker visa scheme operator is.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The guaranteed minimum number of hours offered by each operator and the average working hours for seasonal migrant workers by each operator is commercially sensitive data. There are no zero-hour contracts.
The sponsor licence regime - Workers and Temporary Workers: guidance for sponsors: sponsor a seasonal worker - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) - places a broad range of responsibilities on Scheme Operators to ensure that the rights of migrant workers are protected, including being responsible for ensuring workers have sufficient work, as part of their sponsorship duties.
The Government keeps these protections under close ongoing review.
Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what minimum hours guarantee is in place for workers on the agricultural seasonal worker visa; and what options are available to workers if little or no work is available.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All recruitment operators for the Seasonal Workers visa route offer a guaranteed minimum number of hours for seasonal migrant workers, with most working in excess of these hours. The usual rules prohibiting zero hours contracts continue to apply. Recruitment operators can transfer seasonal workers between farms to ensure these minimum hours are met and they also have welfare measures in place to ensure workers are well cared for.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the press release of 16 December entitled Government provides boost to horticulture industry with certainty over seasonal workers, what is the guaranteed minimum of paid hours each week for workers on the scheme; who is responsible for monitoring that this is received by workers for the duration of their 6 month visa; and what are the channels for redress if workers are not paid.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All recruitment operators for the Seasonal Workers visa route offer a guaranteed minimum number of hours for seasonal migrant workers, with most working in excess of these hours. The usual rules prohibiting zero hours contracts continue to apply. Recruitment operators can transfer seasonal workers between farms to ensure these minimum hours are met and they also have welfare measures in place to ensure workers are well cared for.
The Home Office and Defra continue to monitor the visa route closely to make sure operators and growers adhere to the stringent requirements set for ensuring the safety and wellbeing of the seasonal workers, including redress if workers are not paid. The operators of the Seasonal Worker visa route are licensed via a rigorous government selection process. As a minimum requirement, operators must be licensed by the Gangmasters Labour and Abuse Authority (GLAA). This makes sure that all workers are only placed with farms that adhere to all relevant legislation. Should a scheme operator lose their GLAA licencing at any point, their sponsor licence will be revoked with immediate effect.
Defra run an annual workers survey and liaise regularly with operators to monitor any issues. A new team will also focus on ensuring sponsors are abiding by workers' rights by improving training and processes for compliance inspectors and creating clear policies and guidance for robust action for scheme operators where workers are at risk of exploitation.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether there are guaranteed minimum hours of work for people on the agricultural Seasonal Worker visa working in horticulture.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
All recruitment operators for the Seasonal Workers Visa Route offer a guaranteed minimum number of hours for seasonal migrant workers, with most working in excess of these hours. Recruitment operators can transfer seasonal workers between farms to ensure these minimum hours are met and they also have welfare measures in place to ensure workers are not left without support.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has taken recent steps to help support ornamental horticulture nurseries to access the workforce they need to meet (a) market demand and (b) environmental targets.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra recognises the importance of the domestic ornamental horticulture sector in promoting people’s health and wellbeing, as well as to the economy – UK ornamental production being worth £1.6 billion in 2021. Our highly skilled growers enable us to grow a wide range of top-quality fresh flowers and plants for much of the year. Defra regularly meets with the Ornamental Horticulture Roundtable Group, who last year published their ‘Unlocking green growth: A plan from the ornamental horticulture & landscaping industry’, an action plan which explores opportunities to accelerate the sector's growth and sets out the industry’s potential contributions to the environmental challenges facing the UK. Where Government can help, we will support the opportunities outlined in the plan.
On 24th December 2021, HM Government announced that the Seasonal Worker visa route has been extended until 2024 to allow overseas workers to come to the United Kingdom for up to six months to harvest both edible and ornamental crops.
As announced in the Government Food Strategy in June, an extra 10,000 visas have been released for the Seasonal Worker visa route, with 8,000 of these going to the horticulture sector and 2,000 to the poultry sector. This brings the total number of visas for the horticulture sector, including ornamentals, to 38,000 for 2022. The new Government is carefully considering the position on visa quotas for 2023 and we will say more in due course.
During 2021, Defra undertook a review of automation in horticulture, covering both the edible and ornamental sectors in England. We published the Review on 27 July 2022 and a response from HM Government to the Review’s recommendations will follow soon. The government response will work alongside the extended and expanded Seasonal Worker visa route and Defra’s efforts to attract more residents of the United Kingdom into agricultural work – to support the overall aim of reducing the sector’s dependency on seasonal migrant labour.
All ornamental horticultural businesses are encouraged to advertise roles through the Department for Work & Pensions’ (DWP’s) Find A Job website, where they can upload and manage their vacancies. DWP do not charge for this service and it is available across the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to grant more overseas workers permits for work in food production in the Lee Valley.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Our skills-based immigration system enables us to treat people from every part of the world equally. We have broadened the eligibility of Skilled Worker visas from graduate jobs only to include jobs skilled to RQF level 3 and lowered the salary threshold to £25,600, making more overseas worker eligible to enter the UK. There are already a range of occupations in the agri-food sector which are eligible under our immigration system, if English language and salary requirements are met. Our immigration system is not regional and therefore available to all employers (including those in the Lee Valley area).
The Seasonal Worker visa allows workers to come to the UK for up to six months to work in agriculture, enabling up to 38,000 people to enter the UK this year to work in horticulture. Additionally, on 18 October the route was expanded to enable 2,000 poultry workers to come to the UK to support that sector in the run up to Christmas.
Beyond the UK immigration system is the resident labour market, which includes UK workers and migrants with general work rights, who can all work without meeting Home Office requirements.
Asked by: Owen Thompson (Scottish National Party - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the survey by the National Farmers' Union of England and Wales, published in August 2022, on the potential impact of the shortage of agricultural workers on the harvest in the first half of 2022.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A total of 40,000 seasonal worker visas were available in 2022, with 38,000 of these going to the horticulture sector and 2,000 to the poultry sector. HM Government recognises the importance of a reliable source of seasonal labour for crop picking and packing, and that it is a key part of bringing in the harvest for the horticultural sector. That is why the Prime Minster committed to look at expanding seasonal workers schemes in the leadership campaign. In the meantime, we will continue to monitor the labour needs of the agriculture sector and the impacts of these additional visas.
My Department works with the agriculture sector - including the National Farmers Union of England and Wales - and other Government Departments to understand labour supply and demand, including for both permanent and seasonal workforce requirements, and to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the farming workforce.
As announced in the Government Food Strategy in June, HM Government has now commissioned an independent review which will consider how automation, domestic labour and migrant labour can contribute to tackling labour shortages in the food supply chain. The review will focus on farming, processing, and food and drink manufacturing as sectors which are critical for food production and food security.
Asked by: Selaine Saxby (Conservative - North Devon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the recent recommendation in the Automation in Horticulture Review on a long-term Seasonal Workers Scheme for edible horticulture starting in 2022.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
During 2021 my Department undertook a review of automation in horticulture, covering both the edible and ornamental sectors in England. We have now published this review (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/defra-led-review-of-automation-in-horticulture). The review recommended extending the Seasonal Worker visa route to 'mind the gap' until automation technologies have developed enough to reduce the sector's reliance on seasonal labour.
The review provides a better understanding of what is required to accelerate the development and uptake of automation technologies in both the edible and ornamental sectors, in England, with the view to reducing the sector's long-term dependency on seasonal migrant labour from 2022 onwards. Non-binding recommendations are put forward to increase adoption of available technology and accelerate development of innovative automation and robotics. HM Government will consider the report's recommendations and will respond in due course.
Our responses to the review will work alongside the recently extended and expanded Seasonal Workers visa route - and Defra's efforts to attract more residents of the United Kingdom into agricultural work - to support the overall aim of reducing the sector's dependency on seasonal migrant labour.
HM Government recognises the importance of a reliable source of seasonal labour for crop picking and packing, and that it is a key part of bringing in the harvest for the horticultural sector. That is why the Prime Minster committed to look at expanding seasonal workers schemes in the leadership campaign and we have already extended the seasonal worker visa route to 2024. Discussions are on-going with the Home Office on the visa allocation for 2023.
As announced in the Government Food Strategy in June, HM Government has now commissioned an independent review which will consider how automation, domestic labour and migrant labour can contribute to tackling labour shortages in the food supply chain. The review will focus on farming, processing, and food and drink manufacturing as sectors which are critical for food production and food security. This review, due to report in spring of 2023, will inform our thinking on the Seasonal Workers scheme beyond that.
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
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 he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on (a) the shortfall of applicants in the 2022 Seasonal Workers Scheme, and (b) ensuring there are sufficient applicants in future years of the Seasonal Workers Scheme.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
My department works closely with a wide range of industry stakeholders and other Government departments to understand labour supply and demand, including for both permanent and seasonal workforce requirements, to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the farming workforce. This includes regular meetings with the Home Office to discuss current and future immigration policy and the needs of the farming sector.
Under the Seasonal Workers visa route, as agreed with the Home Office, a total of 40,000 seasonal worker visas were available in 2022, with 38,000 of these going to the horticulture sector and 2,000 to the poultry sector. 2022 has been a challenging year for labour providers, farmers and growers, with war in the Ukraine disrupting the sourcing and supply of workers and extreme weather impacting on harvests. This made it harder to match supply with demand. Visa route operators are working closely with growers to optimise worker transfers between businesses so that workers make the most of their time here and businesses get the support they need.
HM Government recognises the importance of a reliable source of seasonal labour for crop picking and packing, and that it is a key part of bringing in the harvest for the horticultural sector. That is why the Prime Minster committed to look at expanding seasonal workers schemes in the leadership campaign and we are in discussion with the Home Office regarding the visa allocation for 2023 and 2024. In the meantime, we will continue to monitor the labour needs of the agriculture sector and the impacts of these additional visas.
To assist medium to longer term workforce planning HM Government has commissioned an independent review which will consider how automation, domestic labour and migrant labour can contribute to tackling labour shortages in the food supply chain. The review will focus on farming, processing, and food and drink manufacturing as sectors which are critical for food production and food security. It will report in spring 2023.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the independent report entitled Automation in Horticultural Review, published in July 2022, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of that report's recommendation on establishing a long-term seasonal workers' scheme to stabilise workforce pressures in the sector, help growers evaluate their labour needs, and incentivise long-term capital investments in automation technology.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government recognises the importance of a reliable source of seasonal labour for horticulture and the poultry sector and the role of automation in the food supply chain.
The Government’s forthcoming response to the review of automation in horticulture will therefore outline actions to complement the immediate need for seasonal workers and help attract more residents of the United Kingdom into agricultural work – the overall aim of both being to, over time, reduce the sector’s dependency on seasonal migrant labour.
Following an announcement in the Government Food Strategy, an extra 10,000 visas have been released for the Seasonal Worker visa route - bringing the total for this year to 40,000 visas.
Under current agreement with the Home Office a similar number will be rolled forward for 2023. Defra are discussing with them precisely what the number will be, using evidence from the NFU and other stakeholders provided in 2022 and having regard to the Prime Minister’s stated support for a short term expansion of the visa route.
As announced in the Government Food Strategy in June, the Government has now commissioned an independent labour review which will consider how automation, domestic labour and migrant labour can contribute to tackling labour shortages in the food supply chain.
The review will focus on farming, processing, and food and non-alcoholic drink manufacturing as sectors which are critical for food production and food security. The review is being chaired by John Shropshire, an industry veteran who stepped down from his role as CEO of major horticulture producer G’s Group last year. He will be supported by an expert panel drawing in expertise from across the sectors covered by the review.
Defra continues to speak regularly with the agriculture sector and other government departments to understand labour supply and demand, including for both permanent and seasonal workforce requirements, and to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the farming workforce. Defra is also working closely with the Home Office to ensure that the requirements for these sectors are understood across Government.