Plants: UK Trade with EU

(asked on 24th February 2021) - View Source

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 support the UK ornamental horticulture industry to harvest under the new UK-EU trading arrangements.


Answered by
Victoria Prentis Portrait
Victoria Prentis
Attorney General
This question was answered on 1st March 2021

The Government recognises the importance of the ornamental horticultural sector to local economies. We have the climate, landscape, and entrepreneurial growers in this country allowing us to grow top-quality fresh flowers, ensuring consumers are able to access the widest range of beautiful UK grown flowers for most of the year.

We will always champion the ornamental sector, looking for ways they can stay competitive with measures to increase productivity and invest in new technology. Defra is collaborating with the Ornamental Horticulture Roundtable Group, and in particular the Horticulture Trades Association, on a Growth Strategy for the sector to help ensure the ornamental horticulture sector continues to thrive. This is industry led and underlined by research identifying key areas of opportunity for growth in the sector.

The Government is aware that a reliable source of labour is a key part of bringing in the harvest for the ornamental sector. Defra is working closely with industry to understand labour demand and supply and help our world-leading growers access the labour they need.

In 2021 and beyond, horticultural businesses will continue to be able to rely on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status. More than 4.5 million EU citizens and their families have been granted settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme and the application deadline to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme is 30 June 2021.

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