Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many short-term visas were granted for people working in the farming sector in (1) January, (2) February, and (3) March.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The most recent data available on the seasonal worker visa scheme is released quarterly and contained within published tables at: (entry clearance detailed dataset Vis_D02 - attached).
It is worth noting that while most short-term jobs in the agriculture sector are under the seasonal worker visa, a small number may be on other visa types and not all seasonal worker visa jobs will relate to farming.
Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve the rates of young people in the UK forging careers in the farming industry.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The department has introduced T Levels which will provide students with a high quality, technical alternative to A levels after GCSEs. T Levels in Agriculture, Land Management & Production and Animal Care & Management will be available from September 2023.
We are committed to supporting more young people into apprenticeships in the agriculture, environmental and animal care sectors. Funding for apprenticeships in England will grow to £2.7 billion by the 2024/25 financial year to support more apprenticeships in employers of all sizes. There are currently 40 high-quality, employer-designed apprenticeship standards available in these sectors, in occupations such as crop technician, livestock unit technician and agriculture professional adviser. Alongside this, there are a number of land-based providers delivering specific provision in farming and agriculture to cater for those pursing qualifications and careers in these areas.
The Free Courses for Jobs offer, which was launched in April 2021, gives eligible adults the chance to access high value level 3 qualifications, including 18 agricultural qualifications, for free, which can support them to gain higher wages or a better job.
The Careers & Enterprise Company is supporting schools and colleges to embed best practice in the delivery of careers information, advice and guidance, so young people are aware of the full range of training and careers available to them and have access to a broad range of employers and workplaces, including those in the agricultural, forestry and fishing sectors. This will be delivered through the national roll-out of Career Hubs, Career Leader training, and the Enterprise Adviser Network.
The National Careers Service, a free, government funded careers information, advice and guidance service draws on a range of labour market information to support and guide individuals. It is impartial, and careers guidance is tailored to individual needs, but careers advisers can play a key role in alerting people to the range of farming careers available. National Careers Service supports this through disseminating regular information to careers advisers.
The Service website gives customers access to a range of useful digital tools and resources to support them including ‘Explore Careers’ which includes more than 130 industry areas and more than 800 job profiles including include a range of roles in the farming industry, describing what those roles entail, qualifications and entry routes.
Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many apprenticeships in the farming industry were (1) started, and (2) completed, in each year between 2018 and 2021.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The department publishes the Apprenticeships in England by Industry Characteristics publication that shows apprenticeship starts amongst employers in the Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing enterprise sector: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships-in-england-by-industry-characteristics#content-3-heading.
Apprenticeship starts in the Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing sector (and its sub-divisions) from the 2017/18 to the 2020/21 academic years are shown in the attached table and can be found in the 'Apprenticeship starts' tab.
Industry based data is not held for achievements. However, the most timely data for starts and achievements for apprentices studying agricultural and related subjects from the 2017/18 to the 2020/21 academic years can also be found in the attached table and can be found in the 'Starts and achievements' tab.
Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to teach school children about the countryside and British farming.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
There are opportunities within the geography and science curriculums to teach about the countryside, farming and agriculture, and how important the latter are to food production. These do not feature as stand-alone topics in the National Curriculum. The National Curriculum is a framework designed to give teachers the freedom and flexibility to cover particular topics in greater depth if they wish, and this could include teaching about the countryside and farming.
As part of the department’s Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy, our National Education Nature Park initiative will also give children and young people the opportunity to learn about and connect with nature.
By 2025 we aim to introduce a natural history GCSE, giving young people a further opportunity to engage with and develop a deeper knowledge and understanding of the natural world. In studying this GCSE, young people will explore organisms and environments in more depth, gain knowledge and practical experience of fieldwork and develop a greater understanding of conservation.
Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of how many (1) vacancies, and (2) roles, there were in the farming sector, in each month of 2022.
Answered by Lord True - Shadow Leader of the House of Lords
A response to the noble Lord’s Parliamentary Question of 12 July is below and attached.
Professor Sir Ian Diamond | National Statistician
The Earl of Leicester
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
18 July 2022
Dear Lord Leicester,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking what estimate has been made of how many (1) vacancies, and (2) roles, there were in the farming sector, in each month of 2022 (HL1696). The Office for National Statistics produces statistics on both vacancies and jobs in our Vacancies and Jobs statistical publication[1]. Within this publication, estimates of both vacancies[2] and jobs[3] are produced by industry, according to the Standard Industrial Classification 2007. Within the classification, the closest industry to “farming” would be Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing. With the data available, unfortunately it is not possible to provide estimates of the number of vacancies held by agricultural businesses. This is because the vacancy survey excludes businesses within the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry, owing to the disproportionate costs involved as the industry mainly consists of very small businesses with few vacancies. We are however exploring the use of online job advert data to provide better insights into labour demand by occupation, and we are hoping to publish these insights later this year.
Statistics on jobs are published on a quarterly basis and for agriculture, forestry and fishing are based on estimates of first and second jobs, either as employees or as self-employed, as measured by our Labour Force Survey[4]. As it is a survey of people within private households, it is based on respondents correctly classifying themselves within the right industry. Our most recent publication in June covered data up to March 2022 when we estimate there to have been 329,000 jobs within the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry[5]. This represented a fall of 13,000 from the previous period (December 2021), and a fall of 79,000 when compared with its pre-pandemic level in December 2019.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
1 https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/bulletins/jobsandvacanciesintheuk/latest
2 https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peoplenotinwork/unemployment/datasets/vacanciesbyindustryvacs02
3 https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/datasets/workforcejobsbyindustryjobs02
4 https://www.ons.gov.uk/surveys/informationforhouseholdsandindividuals/householdandindividualsurveys/labourforcesurvey
5 https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/datasets/summaryoflabourmarketstatistics
Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in setting up the Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership announced at COP26; and what the membership of the Partnership will be.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
I am pleased to confirm that the first meeting of the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership (the Partnership) was held on 4 May 2022.
The Partnership will advance UK Administrations’ shared commitment to work together to progress the evidence base on blue carbon habitats in the UK, and our shared interest in protecting and restoring blue carbon habitats as a nature-based solution. Therefore, the membership includes representatives of the UK Government and all Devolved Administrations.
Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to recognise full COVID-19 vaccination status for British citizens who have had one COVID-19 vaccination administered in England and the other vaccination administered abroad.
Answered by Lord Kamall - Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care)
A service has been in place since 11 October for individuals residing in England who received one or more Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna and Janssen vaccines in the United States of America, the European Union, Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Australia or Canada to record their vaccination in the National Immunisation Management Service (NIMS). If they have received one vaccination overseas of a two-dose course, they will be offered a second dose of a Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency-approved equivalent vaccine. Once an individual has a NIMS record, they can access a NHS COVID Pass.
The service currently has seven sites capable of reviewing vaccination evidence, with 13 additional sites pending. Further expansion of the service is planned in due course.
Asked by: Earl of Leicester (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Scottish Government to ensure that people who have had one COVID-19 vaccine administered in England and one in Scotland are recognised in Scotland as being fully vaccinated; and what plans they have to ensure that people who have had one COVID-19 vaccine administered in England and one in Scotland are recognised in England as being fully vaccinated.
Answered by Lord Kamall - Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care)
Discussions at official and ministerial level have taken place with the Scottish Government. Following these discussions, NHS Digital has established live bi-directional data flows between England and Scotland which updates both the general practitioner (GP) record and NHS COVID Pass status. Before a NHS COVID Pass can be issued, both doses must be recorded.
Interoperable digital and non-digital solutions are now available in each United Kingdom nation. The service an individual accesses depends on where their GP is registered.