Independent East Derry MLA Claire Sugden has stated that labor rules need to be eased to ensure the survival of the agri-food industry in Northern Ireland. Ms Sugden explained that fruit, vegetable, mushroom and meat producers are struggling to fill vacancies since post-Brexit immigration rules were brought in in 2021.
She has appealed to the UK government to act quickly to change the current rules excluding lower-skilled foreign workers from coming to work for adequate periods, stating: “Agriculture is Northern Ireland’s biggest industry, supporting hundreds of thousands of people here. These industries won’t, however, be able to carry on if they can’t harvest or process their fruit and vegetables or if inadequate numbers of meat processors mean lengthy backlogs or culls.”
The MLA noted that the Seasonal Workers Programme has provided some relief to the sector. However, she said that it can take weeks or months to train workers who are then forced to leave when the programme ends.
Source: agriland.ie