NFU reaction to MAC review of Seasonal Workers Scheme

16 July 2024

NFU President Tom Bradshaw

NFU President Tom Bradshaw

Following the publication of the Migration Advisory Committee’s (MAC) review1 of the Seasonal Workers Scheme (SWS), NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: 

“We are pleased to see that the MAC recognises how significantly important the SWS is to domestic food security, set against a backdrop of global instability and climate change. It is especially pleasing that the review reinforces the NFU’s call on the government to provide certainty about the future of the scheme, allowing food producing businesses to plan ahead. This was alongside a number of other recommendations agreeing with asks the NFU has been campaigning on for2 many years.

“Worker welfare is a top priority for our members. We continue to engage with all parts of the supply chain to ensure the skilled people who travel to the UK to help produce food for the nation have a positive experience.  The government has pledged to introduce a single enforcement body and we look forward to working with them on this.  The industry is already highly regulated and audited, so it is important to limit the level of duplication.

“There are recommendations made by the MAC, including points around the Employer Pays Principle and employment length, which we need to look at in further detail to see how this would impact the range of farming and growing businesses we represent.

“As highlighted by the review, certainty is key to the success of the scheme for British farmers, growers, workers and consumers alike. Therefore, it is vital that the new government commits to a five-year rolling scheme and reviews the costs associated to ensure all businesses can access the scheme. Certainty is the currency with which businesses trade and having this commitment would help to restore some of the lost confidence of British farmers and growers. “

More information

  1. The Migration Advisory Committee published its review into the Seasonal Workers Scheme on Tuesday 16 July.
  2. Over a number of years of campaigning, the NFU has been calling for the SWS:
    1. To be flexible on the amount of time workers have to be out of country for to apply for the visa. We have been asking that the SWS visa is extended to nine months for the horticulture visa.
    2. To provide further certainty for farmers and growers in relation to the long-term future of the scheme and the need to confirm visa numbers, and any tapering of these numbers, that may occur.
    3. The need for further investigative work into how the Employer Pays Principle.