Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to tackle the estimated 500,000 job vacancies across the food and drink sector.

Defra is working closely with the food and drink sector to understand labour demand and supply, including both permanent and seasonal workforce requirements.

The Seasonal Workers Pilot was expanded for 2021, from 10,000 to 30,000 visas, granted for workers to come to the UK for a period of up to six months to work in the edible horticulture sector.

Although pilot numbers have increased, it is not designed to meet the full labour needs of the horticultural sector. This workforce boost will complement the workers already resident in the UK and looking to take up farm work during the busy harvest months, following in the footsteps of those who took up positions last summer to help keep the nation fed despite the challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic.

In response to the current exceptional circumstances, up to 5500 poultry workers and 5000 HGV drivers transporting food and fuel will be able to enter the UK for work in the lead up to Christmas 2021. This is a temporary, emergency measure. 800 pork butchers will also be able to enter and work in the UK for a period of six months. This additional temporary adjustment is in addition to foreign butchers already being eligible since January 2021 to apply to come to the UK through the Skilled Worker Route as part of the point-based immigration system.

In 2021 and beyond, businesses will continue to be able to rely on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status. Over 5.3 million EU citizens and their families have been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme.

The Government is encouraging all sectors, including the food and drink sector, to make employment more attractive to UK domestic workers through offering training, careers options, wage increases and to invest in automation technology.

To help with these efforts, Defra is working with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to raise awareness of career opportunities within the food and drink sector among UK workers.

All food and drink sector businesses are encouraged to advertise roles through the Find A Job website, where they can upload and manage their vacancies. DWP does not charge for this service and it is available across the United Kingdom.

Defra also welcomes the Ministry of Justice’s work on the Release On Temporary Licence scheme for work across a number of sectors, including the food and drink sector. The scheme aims to help prisoners gain useful skills and work experience as they approach their release.