Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on delivering a green Brexit.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Since we have left the EU, we have introduced a range of measures to improve our environment and deliver our ambition for a green Brexit.
To take a few examples, we passed the first Environment Act in over two decades, which sets out how we plan to protect and improve the natural environment in the UK. The Act will help us leave our environment in a better state for future generations and set an ambitious target to halt species decline by 2030. This Act includes the new Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) which will effectively enforce these enhanced environmental rules and standards. By 31 January 2023 we will publish our Environment Improvement Plan, which builds on the 25 Year Environment Plan (published in 2018). It will set out how we will deliver against our cross-government targets and commitments.
We have introduced a Net Zero Strategy, and announced measures to restore nature across England, to address the twin challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss – trebling our tree planting rate, restoring 35,000 ha of peatland by the end of the parliament, and initiating lasting action on species recovery.
Alongside these and other measures, the Retained EU Law Bill will provide further opportunity to ensure that environmental law is fit for purpose and able to drive improved environmental outcomes, whilst also ensuring regulators can deliver efficiently. This will ensure the UK regulatory framework is appropriate and tailored to the UK.
Leaving the EU also means farming in England is now going through the biggest change in a generation. Most importantly, the Government’s approach to working with the farming sector is changing. We are improving our policies and services to make them more effective, fair, flexible, accessible and workable for farmers.
We are introducing policies that work for farm businesses, food production and the environment. Food is still the primary purpose of farming, and always will be. The Food Strategy includes plans that will support farmers to boost home-grown fruit and vegetable production, and encourage people to buy more locally-sourced, high-welfare food.
Farmers also play a crucial role in protecting and enhancing the natural environment. If we want farming and food production to be resilient and sustainable over the long term, then farming and nature can and must go hand in hand. Many farmers have already moved to this way of operating. Those who are leading the way already know that you can produce quality food, at a profit with strong yields by farming with nature instead of against it.
The Government needs to catch up and help other farmers join this growing movement. This means enabling farmers to have resilient businesses, produce the food our nation needs, and also to protect and enhance the natural environment – looking after our soils, reducing air and water pollution, managing flood risk, reducing emissions and sequestering carbon.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of whether the 30,000 visas available under the Seasonal Workers Pilot scheme will meet the labour needs of the agricultural sector.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Defra continues to speak regularly with the agriculture sector and other government departments to understand labour supply and demand, including for both permanent and seasonal workforce requirements, and to ensure there is a long-term strategy for the farming workforce.
Whilst numbers vary year on year, we estimate approximately 50,000 - 60,000 seasonal workers are needed annually across the horticulture sector to bring in the harvest. Defra statistics from the Annual June survey of Agriculture and Horticulture provide seasonal, casual and gang labour workforce numbers for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland at 57,000 in 2020.
The need for seasonal labour is met through various sources, primarily migrant labour and EU citizens with settled status. Over 5.8 million EU citizens and their families have been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme.
The Seasonal Worker visa scheme, which has been extended to 2024, allows 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 in 2022, and this was being kept under review with the potential to increase by 10,000 visas if there was evidence of need.
The recently announced Food Strategy White Paper will also seek to address challenges faced by the sector, including through an independent review to tackle labour shortages in the food supply chain, considering the roles of automation, domestic labour and migration routes. To support the sector, the Government will also release 10,000 visas for the seasonal worker visa route, with 2,000 of these going to the poultry sector.
On 24 February the Government announced that all Ukrainian nationals on an existing seasonal worker visa will have their leave in the UK extended to 31 December 2022 and can now switch to the Ukraine Extension Scheme visa if eligible.
Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to issue agricultural visas for picking and processing fruit and vegetables to female Ukrainian workers; and what consideration they have given to housing any such individuals in RAF Linton-on-Ouse.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Home Office already operates such an immigration route. The Seasonal Worker visa scheme, which has been extended to 2024, allows 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 in 2022, and this is being kept under review with the potential to increase by 10,000 visas if there is evidence of need.
The Seasonal Workers visa route is managed by four scheme operators. The scheme operators select, sponsor and monitor migrants, and adhere to all Home Office requirements in practice, including those on migrant safety and welfare.
Under the scheme, licenced operators can recruit workers of any nationality or gender from any EU or non-EU country, including from Ukraine.
The operators of the Seasonal Worker visa route manage accommodation arrangements and must ensure that all workers are housed in safe hygienic accommodation and many UK farms are already set up for accommodating seasonal workers on site for the spring and summer months. Only asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute will be accommodated in the new reception centre at RAF Linton-On-Ouse.
On 24 February the Government announced that all Ukrainian nationals on an existing seasonal worker visa will have their leave in the UK extended to 31 December 2022 and can now switch to the Ukraine Extension Scheme visa if eligible.
Under the Ukraine Extension Scheme those who are successful in their application can stay in the UK for up to three years and will be able to live, work and study in the UK and access public funds. Further details on eligibility can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-to-stay-in-the-uk-under-the-ukraine-extension-scheme. A copy of the guidance is also attached to this answer.
Ukrainian women who are currently in the UK and have a right to work here can also access agricultural jobs through the Department for Work and Pensions’ Find A Job website.
Asked by: Kate Kniveton (Conservative - Burton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to tackle worker shortages in the pig sector.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
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 food and farming workforce, including for the pig sector. This includes a series of roundtable meetings hosted by Minister Prentis with stakeholders from across the pig sector supply chain.
Since January 2021 the Skilled Worker visa route has been open to all nationals who wish to come to the UK for the purpose of working in a skilled role – including those in butchery.
Last autumn the pig sector faced some specific challenges due to a combination of the COVID-19 pandemic, the loss of the Chinese export market for some processors, and access to labour issues. This included a shortage of skilled butchers which impacted the capacity of processors to kill and process pigs. In recognition of this, the Government announced in November 2021 that additional, temporary visas would be available for pork butchers to work in the UK for up to 6 months in addition to the existing Skilled Worker visa route. While applications for these temporary visas are now closed, pork butchers can remain in the UK for six months from the date their visa was granted.
In February 2022, the Home Office announced a series of visa concessions for temporary workers of Ukrainian nationality. Ukrainian nationals in temporary pork butcher jobs will have their leave in the UK extended to 31 December 2022 and will also be allowed to apply to the skilled worker route.
In addition, food and farming businesses can continue to rely on EU nationals living in the UK with settled or pre-settled status. Over 5.7 million EU citizens and their families have been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme. EU nationals who have settled status can continue to travel to the UK for work in 2022 and beyond.
The Government also encourages the meat processing sector to pursue improvements to training offers, career options and wages to ensure that the sector draws on the large domestic labour pool in the UK, as well as investing in new technology across the industry.
To support 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 farming sectors among UK workers.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate her Department has made of the cost of providing physical cards as proof of settled status.
Answered by Kevin Foster
If we were required to issue a physical card to everyone who is granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), we would have to provide them with biometric cards akin to the biometric residence permit we plan to phase out by the end of 2024.
During the passage of The Immigration and Social Security Coordination (EU Withdrawal) Act 2020, we estimated it would cost at least £270m if each of the 3.6m EEA citizens granted leave under the EUSS at that time was provided with a biometric card.
Up to the end of September this year over 5.2 million people had obtained a grant of status under the EUSS. We therefore expect this estimate to now be much higher.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the revised guidance on the Common Travel Area from UK Visas and Immigration, published on 2 September 2021, whether compliance with Border Force requests to produce passports or the other listed identity and nationality documents on Common Travel Area routes is voluntary or compulsory.
Answered by Kevin Foster
We are phasing out the use of EU, EEA and Swiss national identity cards, with certain exceptions, as a valid travel document for entry to the UK from 1 October.
As now, there will be no routine immigration controls on Common Travel Area (CTA) journeys and none whatsoever on land journeys between Ireland and Northern Ireland. However, intelligence-led operations to target potential abuse of CTA routes will continue. We want to ensure passengers have sufficient clarity on what they need to do when travelling from one part of the CTA to another, in particular British and Irish citizens who continue to benefit from their important CTA rights.
We are therefore confirming the documents people will be required to present when entering the UK from another part of the CTA as part of an intelligence-led immigration control if they are encountered by a Border Force officer.
Border Force asses each case on its individual merits. Those who cannot provide the required documents or satisfy Border Force of their status may be refused entry and expected to leave the UK.
The full list of updated document requirements are available on the gov.uk page you refer to.
Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department made of the potential implications for his policies for the domestic road haulage sector of the combined effect of the UK leaving the EU and the covid-19 outbreak; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) allows EU hauliers to continue to operate to, from, through and within the UK without the need for permits. The TCA ensures that the vast majority of journeys will continue as they did before the end of the transition period. The Agreement also entirely respects the UK’s right to decide for ourselves how we regulate the domestic transport sector since domestic transport standards are out of scope of the Agreement.
On the impact of Covid-19 on the domestic haulage market, Covid-19 necessitated a suspension in commercial driver testing, pausing supply of domestic talent, but the DVSA have now restarted and ramped up testing to address the backlog. This shortage of HGV drivers is longstanding and predates the UK’s decision to leave the EU.
Asked by: Lord Campbell-Savours (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether a person (1) born in an (a) European Economic Area, or (b) European Free Trade Area, state other than the UK, (2) who carries a non-UK passport, (3) who is married to a UK citizen, and (4) has (a) resided, and (b) been employed, in the UK for over 20 years including paying taxes or drawing pension payments, is required to apply for revised domiciliary or another form of changed residency status.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
EU, European Economic Area (EEA) and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) nationals now require UK immigration status to live in the UK. Where they do not already hold such status, they may obtain it under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), where they were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020 or are a family member joining such a person, or under the points-based immigration system.
EU, EEA and EFTA nationals who acquired a right of permanent residence here under EU law still need to apply for status under the EUSS.
Those who already have indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK do not need to apply for EUSS status, but may do so, free of charge, if they wish, to take advantage of the additional rights available to them under the Citizens’ Rights Agreements.
Asked by: Lord Campbell-Savours (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether a person (1) born in the EU, (2) with an EU Member State passport, (3) who is married to a UK citizen, and (4) has (a) resided, and (b) been employed, in the UK for over 20 years, including paying taxes or drawing pension payments, is required to apply for revised domiciliary or another form of changed residency status.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
EU, European Economic Area (EEA) and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) nationals now require UK immigration status to live in the UK. Where they do not already hold such status, they may obtain it under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), where they were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020 or are a family member joining such a person, or under the points-based immigration system.
EU, EEA and EFTA nationals who acquired a right of permanent residence here under EU law still need to apply for status under the EUSS.
Those who already have indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK do not need to apply for EUSS status, but may do so, free of charge, if they wish, to take advantage of the additional rights available to them under the Citizens’ Rights Agreements.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord True on 2 February (HL12298), whether they will now (1) answer the question put, namely whether they have made any assessment of the possible competitive disadvantages to (a) England, (b) Wales, and (c) Scotland, of not being in the EU Single Market; and if so, what was the result of any such assessment, and (2) over whom Northern Ireland has a "competitive advantage" by being in the EU Single Market for goods.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The UK has left the EU Single Market and Customs Union with a deal that means the UK can now regulate in a way that suits the UK economy and UK businesses – doing things in a more innovative and effective way, without being bound by EU rules.
The Northern Ireland Protocol protects the territorial integrity of the UK by safeguarding Northern Ireland’s place in the UK’s customs territory and internal market, ensuring unfettered access to Great Britain for Northern Ireland businesses, while also facilitating the free flow of goods between Northern Ireland and the EU.
The questions of the advantages of relationships with the EU single market and customs union have been extensively debated over the last four years. I note that the Liberal Democrats campaigned to reverse Brexit in the last General Election, but the people of the United Kingdom voted to Get Brexit Done, endorsing the Conservative commitment to leave the Single Market and Customs Union.