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1722342

registered interest
date	19/07/2024
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Migration Advisory Committee Review of the Seasonal Worker Visa, published in July, whether they intend to commit to the long-term continuation of the Seasonal Worker Scheme; and what consideration they have given to providing notice of five years or more of any withdrawal from that scheme to allow adjustments to be made by the agricultural and retail sectors.
tabling member printed	Lord Rose of Monewden
uin	HL182
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/08/2024 answer text <p>The Government is carefully considering the Migration Advisory Committee’s review of the Seasonal Worker route and will announce a detailed response in due course.</p> answering member printed Lord Hanson of Flint grouped question UIN HL183 question first answered 01/08/2024 13:47:00 answering member 533 label Biography information for Lord Hanson of Flint
tabling member	4326 label Biography information for Lord Rose of Monewden

1722343

registered interest
date	19/07/2024
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to continue the Seasonal Worker Visa Scheme as part of a national food security strategy.
tabling member printed	Lord Rose of Monewden
uin	HL183
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/08/2024 answer text <p>The Government is carefully considering the Migration Advisory Committee’s review of the Seasonal Worker route and will announce a detailed response in due course.</p> answering member printed Lord Hanson of Flint grouped question UIN HL182 question first answered 01/08/2024 13:47:00 answering member 533 label Biography information for Lord Hanson of Flint
tabling member	4326 label Biography information for Lord Rose of Monewden

1659976

registered interest
date	12/09/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support farmers experiencing seasonal worker shortages.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL10086
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2023 answer text <p>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 make sure that these requirements are understood across government.</p><p> </p><p>The Government recognises the importance of a reliable source of seasonal labour for crop production, and that it is a key part of bringing in the harvest for the horticultural sector. A key source of seasonal labour is the Seasonal Worker visa route, which allows a pre-defined number of overseas workers to come to the United Kingdom for up to six months to support horticulture growers during peak production periods, whilst maintaining robust immigration control.</p><p> </p><p>To reduce the risk of seasonal labour shortages in horticulture, in December 2022, the Government announced that an allocation of 45,000 Seasonal Worker visas will be made available in 2023. This is an uplift of 15,000 visas compared to the allocation at the start of 2022. The Government confirmed at the Food Summit on 16 May that the number of Seasonal Workers visas available in 2024 for horticulture will again be 45,000. A further 2,000 visas are available for seasonal poultry workers to help manage pre-Christmas demand.</p><p /><p>A further 10,000 visas are potentially available for horticulture should there be demand and contingent on sponsors and growers continuing to improve worker welfare standards. There are visas available in this year’s allocation and businesses should contact one of the scheme operators if they need seasonal workers.</p><p> </p><p>There are currently six scheme operators for horticulture and two for poultry as follows:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.agri-hr.com%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C14d94e8e0e664574497f08dbb50bc914%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638302834437471840%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=QPPsUR16pQIe2Y0fnkUCobLxZ1hOG7ai2ANNcVp%2Fr98%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Agri-HR</a> (horticulture)</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.concordia.org.uk%2Fseasonal-work&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C14d94e8e0e664574497f08dbb50bc914%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638302834437471840%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=EaTin7XDJUhI4CkrQqta4xXgQ%2BNZtuYbVm0BGEfXVqc%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Concordia</a> (horticulture)</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fethero.co.uk%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C14d94e8e0e664574497f08dbb50bc914%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638302834437471840%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=NBh413FI%2FMDFVeVcyoC%2FefzxtKlqDG6%2F7KM6C3eW63k%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Ethero</a> (horticulture)</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fruitfuljobs.com%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C14d94e8e0e664574497f08dbb50bc914%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638302834437471840%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=y1HLiU3MaUZcwUaywbgTMjC%2BmBAfZpBPTL8YSE5Te%2Bk%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Fruitful Jobs</a> (horticulture)</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hopslaboursolutions.com%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C14d94e8e0e664574497f08dbb50bc914%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638302834437627463%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=lkMbo5bmeOk0TiGHtjOpnRQti74KW668XptuPgfzNBM%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">HOPS</a> (horticulture)</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pro-force.co.uk%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C14d94e8e0e664574497f08dbb50bc914%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638302834437627463%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=eDRBAa9kkVJ5GGzBRg5H3lGdu1OLZJ6rD%2Ft1JctDhJ0%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Pro-Force Ltd</a> (horticulture and poultry)</p><p><a href="https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rerecruitment.com%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cpqteam%40defra.gov.uk%7C14d94e8e0e664574497f08dbb50bc914%7C770a245002274c6290c74e38537f1102%7C0%7C0%7C638302834437627463%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=kIy97WIGerwuIoVty4kjQGhf59DcZV8bviEqvCbnjrE%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">RE Recruitment</a> (poultry)</p><p> </p><p>To inform future decisions on labour across the sector, Defra also commissioned John Shropshire to carry out an Independent Review into Labour Shortages in the Food Supply Chain throughout 2022 and 2023, considering how automation, domestic labour and migrant labour could contribute to tackling labour shortages in our sectors, including horticulture.</p><p> </p><p>This report was published on 30 June 2023 and the government response – which will also be informed by the Review of Automation in Horticulture – is expected to be published in autumn 2023. At the same time as the response, the Government will set out how it will support the sector to access the labour it needs alongside actions to reduce the sector’s reliance on migrant labour, including via our work on automation and promoting domestic labour procurement and training.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 18/09/2023 14:14:16 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1655133

registered interest
date	25/07/2023
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government how many seasonal agricultural workers there have been in 2023 so far through the seasonal agricultural workers scheme; and from which countries those workers originated.
tabling member printed	Lord Mann
uin	HL9701
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 31/07/2023 answer text <p>The Home Office publishes data on Seasonal Worker visas by nationality in the ‘<a href="https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fcollections%2Fimmigration-statistics-quarterly-release&amp;data=05%7C01%7CSheffieldWorkRoutes.PQandFOI%40homeoffice.gov.uk%7C683281e45b934212498108db8dc4f3e6%7Cf24d93ecb2914192a08af182245945c2%7C0%7C0%7C638259649256589311%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=w7nVRpdorp2IdYYTqvoRyZkaFL2CeBIYCa5EHqzLAxI%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Immigration Statistics Quarterly Release</a>’. Data on the outcomes of Seasonal Worker visas are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the <a href="https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fstatistical-data-sets%2Fmanaged-migration-datasets%23entry-clearance-visas-granted-outside-the-uk&amp;data=05%7C01%7CSheffieldWorkRoutes.PQandFOI%40homeoffice.gov.uk%7C683281e45b934212498108db8dc4f3e6%7Cf24d93ecb2914192a08af182245945c2%7C0%7C0%7C638259649256589311%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=O5scVWHhS%2FWurUAvcOdieWaFbY0uTTeMrSy0UNrMDRQ%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">detailed entry clearance visas dataset</a>. Selecting ‘Seasonal Worker (previously Tier 5)’ from the visa type subgroup filter will output data on Seasonal Worker visas. Nationality and time frames can also be filtered. Information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data relates up to the end of March 2023.</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2021 Q2</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2021 Q3</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2021 Q4</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2022 Q1</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2022 Q2</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2022 Q3</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2022 Q4</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2023 Q1</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Work</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>55,928</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>72,842</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>70,154</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>77,562</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>110,675</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>123,068</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>111,708</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>142,320</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Investor, business development and talent</p></td><td><p>1,421</p></td><td><p>1,959</p></td><td><p>1,499</p></td><td><p>1,564</p></td><td><p>1,153</p></td><td><p>2,284</p></td><td><p>2,323</p></td><td><p>2,583</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Other work visas and exemptions</p></td><td><p>8,216</p></td><td><p>8,465</p></td><td><p>6,367</p></td><td><p>5,011</p></td><td><p>10,340</p></td><td><p>7,428</p></td><td><p>6,188</p></td><td><p>5,510</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Temporary Worker</p></td><td><p>18,024</p></td><td><p>15,258</p></td><td><p>13,051</p></td><td><p>13,837</p></td><td><p>30,380</p></td><td><p>17,893</p></td><td><p>10,548</p></td><td><p>17,559</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Worker</p></td><td><p>28,267</p></td><td><p>47,160</p></td><td><p>49,237</p></td><td><p>57,150</p></td><td><p>68,802</p></td><td><p>95,463</p></td><td><p>92,649</p></td><td><p>116,668</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>It is important to note that the Seasonal Worker visa includes mostly horticultural workers, but also includes a small number of poultry workers.</p><p> </p><p>Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘<a href="https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fsearch%2Fresearch-and-statistics%3Fkeywords%3Dimmigration%26content_store_document_type%3Dupcoming_statistics%26organisations%255B%255D%3Dhome-office%26order%3Drelevance&amp;data=05%7C01%7CSheffieldWorkRoutes.PQandFOI%40homeoffice.gov.uk%7C683281e45b934212498108db8dc4f3e6%7Cf24d93ecb2914192a08af182245945c2%7C0%7C0%7C638259649256589311%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=71n7sAe6XM%2FuWdU2rBz2Ws9a5Z6d5MjXciuAOcqNWvc%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">Research and statistics calendar</a>’.</p> answering member printed Lord Murray of Blidworth question first answered 31/07/2023 12:34:14 answering member 4950 label Biography information for Lord Murray of Blidworth
tabling member	1387 label Biography information for Lord Mann

1542575

registered interest
date	15/11/2022
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the seasonal workers’ scheme.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of Southwark
uin	HL3436
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/11/2022 answer text <p><ins class="ministerial">The Seasonal Worker visa route was specifically designed to support the horticulture sector in the United Kingdom where growers typically require higher volumes of labour, for relatively short-term periods of time, in line with seasonal production peaks.</ins></p><p><ins class="ministerial">As announced on 24 December 2021, the Seasonal Worker visa route will continue to operate until at least the end of 2024. A total of 40,000 visas are available in 2022, of which 38,000 were for horticulture with the remaining 2,000 allocated to poultry workers in the run up to Christmas. HM Government is carefully considering the position on visa quotas for 2023 and we will say more in due course.</ins></p><p><ins class="ministerial">HM Government closely monitors the Seasonal Worker visa route to ensure its effective operation, and works closely with industry to make sure that the workforce requirements for the food and farming sector are understood across government.</ins></p><p><del class="ministerial">Over recent months the Government, predominantly through the Department for Transport and Defra, has had a sustained dialogue with haulage companies and other organisations involved in the goods supply chain, as well as ministers and officials in the Devolved Administrations. This has included ministerial and industry roundtables, industry summits and tailored workshops.</del></p><p><del class="ministerial">Through this dialogue, we have been able to strengthen communication between government and industry and discuss issues and solutions, on a range of matters that have the potential to cause disruption to UK supply networks, especially with regard to the supply of food. This includes logistics issues at ports of entry for goods entering the UK, labour shortages across the supply chain (particularly lorry drivers), and the domestic supply of carbon dioxide.</del></p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 29/11/2022 14:34:11 question first ministerially corrected 30/11/2022 11:49:11 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon previous answer version 37967 answering member printed Lord Benyon answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	4345 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of Southwark

1487148

registered interest
date	06/07/2022
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the shortage of seasonal workers in the first six months of this year, and (2) the extent of the impact to crops of fruit and vegetables; and what plans they have to address this in 2023.
tabling member printed	Baroness McIntosh of Pickering
uin	HL1528
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/07/2022 answer text <p>Horticulture has long relied on seasonal workers to bring home the harvest. After a series of annual pilots the government announced last December that the Seasonal Worker visa route has been extended to 2024 to allow overseas workers to come to the UK for up to six months to harvest both edible and ornamental crops. An initial allocation of 30,000 visas was made available for 2022, which will be increased to 40,000 (including 2000 for the poultry sector). Defra continues to monitor the supply of labour to UK horticulture throughout the year, working with operators and sector growers to ensure there is sufficient labour for harvesting the UK's fruit and vegetable crops.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 20/07/2022 10:15:57 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	384 label Biography information for Baroness McIntosh of Pickering

1469198

registered interest
date	09/06/2022
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent seasonal agricultural workers being charged recruitment fees; and how many UK recruitment firms have lost their licence for charging such fees illegally.
tabling member printed	Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
uin	HL822
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/07/2022 answer text <p>A key objective of the Seasonal Workers Scheme is to ensure that migrant workers are protected against modern slavery and other labour abuses, including the charging of recruitment fees. The safety and wellbeing of workers is considered paramount.</p><p>The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) assess overseas labour providers when they apply for a licence to be a part of the Seasonal Workers Scheme. Charging recruitment fees would be a breach of the licensing standards. Any labour provider found to be in breach of the licensing standards is not provided with a licence or would have their licence revoked. To date, no licence holder part of the Seasonal Workers Scheme has been found to be in breach of the standards related to recruitment fees.</p><p>The GLAA is undertaking work in partnership to prevent exploitation of workers. For example, the GLAA and seasonal worker pilot operators are jointly developing an informative video, specifically addressing issues related to recruitment fees. The video is due to be launched in the coming weeks. The GLAA is also developing specific guidance aimed for overseas businesses will also be published shortly. Finally, the GLAA is working with UK embassies to engage more closely with in-country government agencies and ensure local laws and regulations are always met.</p> answering member printed Baroness Williams of Trafford question first answered 06/07/2022 15:24:56 answering member 4311 label Biography information for Baroness Williams of Trafford
tabling member	3792 label Biography information for Baroness Jones of Whitchurch

1460221

registered interest
date	25/04/2022
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what are their proposals for seasonal workers for the UK agricultural sector.
tabling member printed	Baroness McIntosh of Pickering
uin	HL7933
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/04/2022 answer text <p>Defra continues to work closely with industry 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 UK agricultural sector.</p><p> </p><p>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 for 2022. This will be kept under review with the potential to increase by 10,000 if there is clear evidence of need.</p><p> </p><p>While acknowledging the sector’s reliance on foreign workers, the UK is committed to becoming a high-skilled, high-wage economy and the Government has been clear that more must be done to attract UK workers through offering training, career options, wage increases and to invest in increased automation technology.</p><p> </p><p>Defra’s Review of Automation in Horticulture will be published shortly and will inform a range of policy decisions regarding automation and seasonal labour from 2022 onwards.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, agricultural businesses can continue to rely on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status and EU nationals who have settled status can continue to travel to the UK to do seasonal work in 2022 and beyond. Over 5.7 million EU citizens and their families have been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme.</p><p> </p><p>Defra is working with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to raise awareness of career opportunities within the food and farming sectors among UK workers.</p><p> </p><p>Defra is also working closely with the Home Office to ensure that the requirement for these sectors is understood across Government.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 28/04/2022 10:39:57 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	384 label Biography information for Baroness McIntosh of Pickering

1388395

registered interest
date	15/12/2021
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what further steps they are taking to avoid crops having to be ploughed in due to a lack of seasonal farm workers.
tabling member printed	The Earl of Caithness
uin	HL5002
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/12/2021 answer text <p>The Government recognises the importance of labour to bringing home the harvest.</p><p>Defra continues to work closely with industry and other Government departments to understand labour supply and demand, and to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the food and farming workforce beyond 2021.</p><p>The expanded Seasonal Workers Pilot has provided a solution to the unskilled labour needs of the edible horticulture sector through 2021, supporting farmers growing UK fruit and vegetables. This sector of agriculture has the highest dependency on seasonal labour.</p><p>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 will be kept under review with the potential to increase by 10,000 visas if necessary.</p><p>In addition, food and farming businesses can continue to rely on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status. Over 5.5 million EU citizens and their families have been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme.</p><p>The Government encourages all sectors to make employment more attractive to UK domestic workers through offering training, careers options, wage increases and to invest in automation technology. To support these efforts, Defra is working with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions to raise awareness of career opportunities in the food and farming sectors among UK workers.</p><p>Defra is also leading a Government review of automation in horticulture to improve our 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. The review’s final report will be published shortly and will inform a range of policy decisions regarding automation and seasonal labour from 2022 onwards.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 30/12/2021 11:19:22 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	3310 label Biography information for The Earl of Caithness

1384700

registered interest
date	03/12/2021
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Agriculture: Seasonal Workers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan to announce a new seasonal agricultural workers scheme for 2022; and what plans they have to include the ornamental horticulture production industry in that scheme.
tabling member printed	Baroness Masham of Ilton
uin	HL4692
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/12/2021 answer text <p>Defra is working closely with the​ Home Office to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the food and farming workforce beyond 2021.</p><p>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 will be kept under review with the potential to increase by 10,000 visas if necessary.</p> answering member printed Lord Benyon question first answered 30/12/2021 13:08:25 answering member 1547 label Biography information for Lord Benyon
tabling member	1850 label Biography information for Baroness Masham of Ilton