Committees

Labour in the food supply chain

Inquiry

There is a high demand for non-UK workers in agriculture and in the wider food supply chain. Veterinarians, who provide certification for the import and export of animals to third countries and provide official controls at food exporting premises, abattoirs and border inspection posts, are currently on the Shortage Occupation List (SOL).

In February 2020, the Government published a policy statement on a points based immigration system, to take effect from 1 January 2021. The statement was clear that the Government would “not implement a route for lower-skilled workers”, because “we need to shift the focus of our economy away from a reliance on cheap labour from Europe and instead concentrate on investment in technology and automation”.

In 2017, the EFRA Committee conducted an inquiry on Feeding the nation: labour constraints, focusing on agriculture and horticulture, and took further evidence in 2018. In 2018, the UK Government announced a two-year Seasonal Workers pilot scheme to allow 2,500 non-EU nationals to come to the UK for 6 months each year to provide seasonal, agricultural support for fruit and vegetable farms. In February 2020, the Government confirmed the expansion of the pilot to allow farmers to hire up to 10,000 workers in 2020.

Read the call for evidence for more information about this inquiry.

Upcoming events

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Past events

Tuesday 17 November 2020
1:45pm Private
2:30pm Public
Labour in the food supply chain - Oral evidence 17 November 2020
2:30pm
  • Victoria Prentis (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
  • Kevin Foster (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at Home Office)
  • Tim Mordan (Head of Farming - Innovation, Productivity and Science at Defra)
  • Philippa Rouse (Director, Future Border & Immigration System Directorate at Home Office)
Room 5, Palace of Westminster
Tuesday 15 September 2020
2:00pm Private
2:30pm Public
Labour in the food supply chain - Oral evidence 15 September 2020
2:30pm
  • Tim Rycroft (Chief Operating Officer at Food and Drink Federation)
  • Simon Doherty (Senior Vice President at British Veterinary Association (BVA))
  • Richard Griffiths (Chief Executive at British Poultry Council)
The Thatcher Room, Portcullis House
Tuesday 7 July 2020
2:00pm Private
2:30pm Public
Labour in the food supply chain - Oral evidence 7 July 2020
2:30pm
  • Tom Bradshaw (Vice President at National Farmers Union (NFU))
  • Mr David Camp (Chief Executive at Association of Labour Providers)
The Thatcher Room, Portcullis House

Contact us

We receive a significant number of emails each day. All requests and invitations are considered but we do not respond directly to everyone. Please be aware, the committee does not look at individual cases or specific complaints.

  • Email: efracom@parliament.uk
  • Address: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA