Migrant labour and agriculture

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Series Details 21.02.17
Publication Date 21/02/2017
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The UK in a Changing Europe promotes rigorous, high-quality and independent research into the complex and ever changing relationship between the UK and the European Union (EU).

It provides an authoritative, non-partisan and impartial reference point for those looking for information, insights and analysis about UK-EU relations that stands aside from the politics surrounding the debate.

The Initiative’s work is tailored to be easily accessible to policy makers, businesses, journalists, civil society organisations, educational institutions and the general public who are interested in the UK’s relationship with the EU.

It is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), and based at King’s College London.Brexit has already had an effect on the supply of migrant labour with employers in agricultural activities encountering difficulty in recruiting all the workers they need. In part this is because of a fall in the value of the pound which makes working in the UK less financially attractive. In part this is because of a perception that they are less welcome in the UK than before the referendum.

What will be needed after Brexit is a new version of Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme (SAWS), not confined to the EU. The countries outside the EU would be a matter for debate, but would be politically stable areas within a reasonable distance of the UK such as the Ukraine.

Source Link Link to Main Source http://ukandeu.ac.uk/migrant-labour-and-agriculture/
Related Links
ESO: In Focus: Brexit - The United Kingdom and the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/brexit-the-united-kingdom-and-the-european-union/
ESO: Background information: NFU launches biggest farming consultation for a generation post-Brexit http://www.europeansources.info/record/nfu-launches-biggest-farming-consultation-for-a-generation-post-brexit/
ESO: Background information: Ploughing the Wrong Furrow. The costs of agricultural exceptionalism and the precautionary principle http://www.europeansources.info/record/ploughing-the-wrong-furrow-the-costs-of-agricultural-exceptionalism-and-the-precautionary-principle/
The Conversation, 28.06.17: The real reasons why British workers won’t pick fruit http://theconversation.com/the-real-reasons-why-british-workers-wont-pick-fruit-80152
The Guardian, 22.06.17: Farms hit by labour shortage as migrant workers shun 'racist' UK https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jun/22/farms-hit-by-labour-shortage-as-migrant-workers-shun-racist-uk
The Guardian, 21.05.17: Brexit and the coming food crisis: ‘If you can’t feed a country, you haven’t got a country’ https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/may/21/brexit-coming-food-crisis-seasonal-migrant-labour-eu

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