Asked by: Jade Botterill (Labour - Ossett and Denby Dale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help farmers recruit people on Seasonal Worker visas.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We know how important securing the right workforce is to the agri-food chain, for both skilled (such as butchers and vets) and temporary (such as seasonal horticulture harvesting) jobs.
The Government has confirmed the Seasonal Worker visa route for 2025, with a total of 43,000 Seasonal Worker visas available for horticulture and 2,000 for poultry. At the NFU conference, the Government announced a five-year extension to the Seasonal Worker visa route, until the end of 2030, giving farms a pipeline of workers and certainty to grow their businesses. Annual quota reviews will ensure we strike the right balance – supporting farms while gradually transitioning away from seasonal migrant labour. This will help secure the labour and skills needed to bring high quality British produce, such as strawberries, rhubarb and daffodils to market.
Asked by: Jade Botterill (Labour - Ossett and Denby Dale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to help support farming businesses in West Yorkshire.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government wants to improve profitability for farmers, including for those in West Yorkshire, to make their businesses viable for the future. That is why we were pleased to announce £5 billion for the farming budget over 2024/25 and 2025/26.
The farming budget will be £2.4 billion in 2025/26. This will include the largest ever budget directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history: £1.8 billion for environmental land management schemes to boost Britain’s food security and accelerate the transition to a more resilient and sustainable farming sector.
Asked by: Jade Botterill (Labour - Ossett and Denby Dale)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to increase the accountability of water company executives for water service failures.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Water (Special Measures) Act will deliver on the Government’s commitment to put water companies under tough special measures, by strengthening regulation as a first legislative step towards improving the sector. The Act will:
Following public consultation, the Government confirmed on 17 December 2024 the introduction of new and increased statutory payment rates, which will ensure that customers get at least double the previous amounts or more when water service standards are not met.
These reforms underscore this Government’s commitment to hold water companies to account for poor performance and to stand up for consumers who receive compromised water services. Water customers around the country will benefit from significantly higher payments to compensate them for water company service failures.