Labour shortages in the food and farming sector

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 15 Sep 2021 Closed: 20 Jul 2022 Parliament page
There have been reports of labour shortages affecting some businesses throughout the food and farming sector, for example: farms have been unable to hire all the seasonal workers they need to harvest food (and pick other crops such as flowers); businesses in the food and drink processing sector – the … Read more
10 Recommendations
5 Conclusions
1 Report
4 Oral sessions
3 Letters
4 Events
Activity timeline 13 events
23 Jun
2022
Report published
23 Jun
2022
Correspondence
6 Apr
2022
Report published
23 Feb
2022
Correspondence
14 Dec
2021
Oral evidence
14 Dec
2021
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Wilson Room, Portcullis House
16 Nov
2021
Oral evidence
16 Nov
2021
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 6, Palace of Westminster
9 Nov
2021
Oral evidence
9 Nov
2021
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 15, Palace of Westminster
26 Oct
2021
Oral evidence
26 Oct
2021
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 8, Palace of Westminster
Oral evidence sessions 4 sessions
14 Dec 2021
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Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Kevin Foster MP · Home Office Philippa Rouse · SRO Future Border & Immigration System Programme, Migration & Borders Group
16 Nov 2021
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Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
David Kennedy · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs George Eustice · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
9 Nov 2021
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Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Andrew Opie · British Retail Consortium (BRC) Dr Ben Broadbent · Bank of England Kate Nicholls · UKHospitality Madeleine Sumption · Migration Observatory Mr Tom Southall · Cold Chain Federation Professor Jo Swaffield · University of York
26 Oct 2021
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Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Charlie Dewhirst · National Pig Association Derek Jarman · British Protected Ornamentals Association Graeme Dear · British Poultry Council Ian Wright · Food and Drink Federation Mr James Russell · British Veterinary Association Mr Nick Allen · British Meat Processors Association Tom Bradshaw · National Farmers' Union (NFU)
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Fourth report - Labour shortages in the food and farming sector HC 713 6 Apr 2022 15 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
15 results
1 Conclusion Acknowledged
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
The evidence we have received leaves us in no doubt that labour shortages, caused by...
The evidence we have received leaves us in no doubt that labour shortages, caused by Brexit and accentuated by the pandemic, have badly affected businesses across the food and farming sector. If not resolved swiftly, they threaten to shrink the … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges the impact of labour shortages and outlines measures taken to address the backlog of pigs, including Private Storage Aid, Slaughter Incentive Payment Schemes, temporary visas, and seeking new export markets.
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2 Conclusion Acknowledged
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
While the whole food and farming sector has suffered from labour shortages, the situation for...
While the whole food and farming sector has suffered from labour shortages, the situation for the pig sector has been particularly severe. Although the Government has taken measures to address the backlog of pigs on farms awaiting slaughter, the issue … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges the severity of the situation for the pig sector and outlines measures taken to address the backlog of pigs, including Private Storage Aid, Slaughter Incentive Payment Schemes, temporary visas, and seeking new export markets.
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3 Recommendation Accepted
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We note the apparent lack of fairness in many contractual arrangements as highlighted by the...
We note the apparent lack of fairness in many contractual arrangements as highlighted by the Minister for Farming, Fisheries and Food. We therefore welcome the Government’s decision to review fairness within the pig supply chain. However, pig farmers continue to … Read more
Government Response
The government stated they introduced temporary visa schemes for poultry workers, food-sector HGV drivers, and pork butchers in recognition of the unique circumstances, and do not plan to re-introduce similar temporary visa schemes in the future.
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4 Conclusion Accepted
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
The food and drink sector has responded to the current labour shortage by increasing wages...
The food and drink sector has responded to the current labour shortage by increasing wages and introducing various incentives. However, this has not always been successful and, where it has worked, it has often resulted in labour movement and churn … Read more
Government Response
The government describes actions already taken, including engaging with employers and stakeholders about the EU Settlement Scheme and new immigration system and does not intend to stand up the Food Resilience Industry Forum regularly in response to labour shortages.
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5 Conclusion Acknowledged
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
The Government’s temporary short-term visa schemes for poultry workers, pork butchers and HGV drivers were...
The Government’s temporary short-term visa schemes for poultry workers, pork butchers and HGV drivers were seriously deficient. They were implemented too late, with many workers unable to arrive in time to help the sector prepare for Christmas and avoid poultry … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges limitations with existing datasets on the wider food and farming workforce, but states that they monitor labour market data in the horticulture sector especially closely.
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6 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We do, however, welcome the fact that the Government was willing to introduce temporary short-term...
We do, however, welcome the fact that the Government was willing to introduce temporary short-term visa schemes for the food and farming sector but it should learn the lessons from the operation and performance of these schemes and apply them … Read more
Government Response
The government responded by discussing the importance of English language ability for workers, which was not the recommendation made.
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7 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We are concerned that, despite existing channels, the Government did not acknowledge the sector’s mounting...
We are concerned that, despite existing channels, the Government did not acknowledge the sector’s mounting concerns about labour shortages earlier in 2021. The Government should not have been “waiting for the data” before taking any action. It should have had … Read more
Government Response
The government's response focuses on the cost of applying for a sponsor license and immigration skills charge. The response does not address the recommendation to improve government engagement with industry or the Food Industry Resilience Forum.
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8 Recommendation Deferred
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We also recommend that the Government reviews the timeliness of the data it relies on...
We also recommend that the Government reviews the timeliness of the data it relies on and, in any reply to this Report, sets out what datasets it uses to monitor the sector, how regularly these are updated, and the time … Read more
Government Response
The government intends to commission the MAC to review the SOL again later this year, so any changes to it can be based on the latest available evidence, encouraging the sector to engage with the MAC on this review.
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9 Recommendation Deferred
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We agree that migrant workers should have a reasonable understanding of English to allow them...
We agree that migrant workers should have a reasonable understanding of English to allow them to communicate at work, integrate into their new communities, protect them from exploitation, and ensure health and safety at work. However, we do not believe … Read more
Government Response
The government intends to commission the MAC to review the SOL again later this year, so any changes to it can be based on the latest available evidence and is encouraging the sector to engage with the MAC on this review.
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10 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We are disappointed that the Home Office Minister for Safe and Legal Migration refused to...
We are disappointed that the Home Office Minister for Safe and Legal Migration refused to recognise that businesses recruiting overseas labour face costs far in excess 36 Labour shortages in the food and farming sector of the visa application charges. … Read more
Government Response
The government announced that the Seasonal Worker route would be extended to 2024 and released an additional 10,000 visas but failed to address the specific request to consult with the sector on additional visa costs.
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11 Recommendation Not Addressed
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
Given the labour shortages facing the food and farming sector, we are surprised that the...
Given the labour shortages facing the food and farming sector, we are surprised that the Government chose to ignore its own Migration Advisory Committee’s (MAC) advice on which roles should be added to the Shortage Occupation List (SOL). While we … Read more
Government Response
The government announced that the Seasonal Worker route would be extended to 2024 and released an additional 10,000 visas, but failed to address the recommendation to add food and farming roles to the Shortage Occupation List.
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12 Recommendation Accepted in Part
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We welcome some of the reforms that Government has made to the Seasonal Workers Pilot,...
We welcome some of the reforms that Government has made to the Seasonal Workers Pilot, including accepting our recommendation that the scheme is extended to the ornamental sector and the provisional announcement of the number of Seasonal Worker Visas for … Read more
Government Response
The government extended the Seasonal Worker route to 2024, allowing overseas workers to harvest both edible and ornamental crops and released an additional 10,000 visas. However, they do not intend to publish monthly updates on the seasonal labour market.
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13 Recommendation Accepted in Part
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
We also call on the Government to make the Seasonal Workers Pilot a permanent scheme...
We also call on the Government to make the Seasonal Workers Pilot a permanent scheme and for it to commit to announcing the number of visas that will be available under the scheme on a rolling five-year basis. (Paragraph 69) Longer term solutions
Government Response
The government extended the Seasonal Worker route to 2024 and released an additional 10,000 visas. They will make an evidence-based decision on the future of the visa route in 2024 but do not intend to publish more frequent statistical updates on the scheme.
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14 Recommendation Accepted
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
In the longer term, we agree with the Government that the sector needs to shift...
In the longer term, we agree with the Government that the sector needs to shift its focus away from immigration and toward domestic workers and technological innovation and development. While not able to deliver results overnight, a greater focus on … Read more
Government Response
Defra will commission an independent review to tackle labour shortages in the food supply chain, considering automation, domestic labour, and migration. Defra will also publish the Review of Automation and a Government response in summer 2022.
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15 Conclusion Acknowledged
Fourth report - Labour shortages i…
The evidence we have taken leaves us in no doubt about the seriousness of the...
The evidence we have taken leaves us in no doubt about the seriousness of the issues facing the food and farming sector caused by labour shortages. These include food security, animal welfare and the mental health of those working in … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges the committee's report and the importance of an innovative, productive, and competitive food supply-chain, and outlines steps they have taken to address labour shortages.
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Government Response AI assessment · 15 of 10 classified
Accepted 3
Accepted in Part 2
Acknowledged 4
Deferred 2
Not Addressed 4
Total 10 recs + 5 conclusions
Correspondence 3 letters
23 Jun 2022 Correspondence from the Chair to Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, dated 14 June
Parliament page
23 Feb 2022 Correspondence from Minister Prentis re: Labour shortages in the food and farming sector inquiry, Pig sector, dated 17 February
Parliament page
16 Sep 2021 Correspondence to the Home Secretary relating to the inquiry into Labour shortages in the food and farming sector, 14 September 2021
Parliament page