UK Politics

The government is exploring a controversial further delay to post-Brexit checks on imports from the EU because of growing alarm that they will exacerbate the cost of living crisis.The controls – already shelved three times – are due to finally come into force in July, but will add an estimated £1bn to the costs of trade, which has already plunged since Brexit.Fears have also been raised that EU suppliers will choose to shun the UK as the mountain of Brexit red tape grows, leading to some foods disappearing from shops and further price hikes.Now The Independent has learnt that some of Boris Johnson’s aides are “sympathetic” to the idea of further delay, with the prime minister expected to be briefed in the coming days.Jacob Rees-Mogg, the “Brexit opportunities” minister, has argued for the checks to be abandoned altogether, and – with no consensus in government – Mr Johnson will be asked to decide.A government source said: “Ministers are looking at this again in the light of cost of living pressures and supply chain pressures. The war in Ukraine has also changed the economic context.”Any further deferral of full checks will spark accusations that the government is running away from the consequences of the hard Brexit it chose and failing to “take back control” of its borders, which it promised to do.Larger traders – who have spent huge sums on preparing for the extra paperwork – are also furious that firms that are not ready are effectively being rewarded for failing to act.Delay also gives EU firms a competitive advantage, critics say, as they can send goods to the UK without the costly bureaucracy confronting UK exporters.This unlevel playing field has been blamed for the 16 per cent plunge in food and drink exports in the first three quarters of 2021 compared with 2019 – a £2.7bn cut – while sales to non-EU markets rose.Despite these criticisms, some in government are arguing that the “underlying risk” from not imposing checks is unchanged, despite the UK having left the EU single market and customs union.Meanwhile, the economic clouds from Brexit are darkening – forcing even the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, to admit that it lies behind the UK’s recent dismal trade performance.Imports and exports will fall by 15 per cent, the Office for Budget Responsibility concluded, taking a 4 per cent chunk out of productivity.July is meant to bring the final set of import controls, introducing export health and phytosanitary certificates on consignments of products of animal and plant origin – and the need to pay vets to supply them.There will also be random physical checks on arrival, to be carried out away from ports at lorry parks in Kent, either under construction or planned.HM Revenue and Customs has written to many thousands of EU haulage firms to try to ensure they are ready, providing information booklets on the new rules in multiple languages.The Independent understands Mr Rees-Mogg is leading calls for the checks to be stalled or scrapped altogether, including at a meeting this week of the Global Britain (Operations) Committee.His spokesperson said: “Jacob is arguing that these are self-imposed costs that are out of proportion with the risks on the ground. At a time of high and rising inflation and supply-chain difficulties, we should not introduce burdensome checks that will impose costs on ourselves, on businesses and consumers.”Mr Rees-Mogg is urging fellow ministers to await the conclusions of government plans to create “the most effective border in the world”, for which he now has responsibility.The strategy would use data, technology and trusted relationships to smooth trade flows by 2025, but some improvements are due before then.However, the government is also risking a legal challenge, under World Trade Organisation rules, if it continues to give preferential treatment to EU imports. More

Boris Johnson’s government has vowed to clamp down on “fire and rehire” practices in the wake of outrage sparked by the mass sacking of P&O Ferries’ workers.Labour has repeatedly called for a complete ban on the practice, which sees firms dismissing employees and rehiring them on lesser terms.Ministers previously dismissed Sir Keir Starmer’s calls, claiming the P&O scandal – which saw 800 people sacked without notice for cheaper agency staff – was not a “fire and rehire” case.However, business minister Paul Scully said on Tuesday that government would now take action and promised to introduce a new “statutory code of practice” to discourage such tactics.Mr Scully said the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) would bring in a new code on “dismissal and reengagement” aimed at boosting compensation pay-outs.In a written statement, the BEIS minister said the planned changes should allow employment tribunal panels to “award an uplift in compensation to the employee, subject to a maximum of 25 per cent of the overall award”.Mr Scully added: “This increases the size of the sanction for companies who abuse the process and do not treat their employees fairly – and should provide a further deterrent effect.”But the TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said the plans “lack bite”, adding: “While a statutory code is a baby step forward, it won’t deter rogue employers like P&O from trampling over workers’ rights.Ms O’Grady added: “It’s time for ministers to finally deliver on their manifesto promise to beef up protections at work – that means delivering an employment bill to stop bad bosses who think they can fire at will.”Tory MPs abstained on a Labour party motion to bring a complete ban on fire and rehire last week, which passed in the Commons by 211 votes. But without government support, it is unlikely to see a major change in employment law.It comes as P&O Ferries boss Peter Hebblethwaite insisted that he will not reverse the decision to sack nearly 800 seafarers despite being given a final chance by transport secretary Grant Shapps.Mr Shapps said he plans to introduce a package of measures to ensure “seafarers are protected” – telling the P&O Ferries chief executive he had “one further opportunity to reverse this decision” and rehire staff on their previous wages.But Mr Hebblethwaite claimed that re-employing the sacked workers on previous wages would “deliberately cause the company’s collapse, resulting in the irretrievable loss of an additional 2,200 jobs”.Grant Shapps vows to introduce new law to ‘undo’ P&O sackingsMr Shapps has said he intends to “block the outcome that P&O Ferries has pursued” – including “paying workers less than the minimum wage”.The transport secretary is poised to attempt to change the law to shut the ferry operator out of UK ports unless they abandon “sweatshop” pay rates as low as £5.15 an hour.But the RMT union has warned that the plan to stop P&O Ferries undercutting the minimum wage is not enough to “undo” the mass sackings.However, the Department for Transport privately acknowledged that action on wages could not be applied retrospectively.Senior MPs have said P&O Ferries must be stripped of its licence to operate in the UK and its boss struck off as a company director after he admitted his firm broke the law by choosing not to consult over the mass sacking.Conservative Huw Merriman, chair of the transport select committee, and Labour’s Darren Jones, the business committee select chair, have demanded harsher action to prosecute P&O Ferries and “remove its licence to operate in the UK”. More

Boris Johnson is facing calls for his resignation, after police confirmed that fixed penalty notices are to be issued in at least 20 cases Covid lockdown law-breaking at parties in Downing Street and Whitehall.Downing Street denied that the imposition of fines of at least £100 amounted to proof that Mr Johnson misled parliament when he told the Commons last December that “all guidance was followed completely” in No 10.Declaring that the PM had “at all times … set out his understanding of events”, Mr Johnson’s official spokesperson said the prime minister will not comment on the outcome of police inquiries until the investigatory process is completed – potentially in several months’ time.And he confirmed that – apart from in the case of Mr Johnson himself – the names of those fined and details of any breaches will not be made public, even if they are senior figures in the PM’s team or members of his family.Under sustained questioning, the spokesperson refused to accept that the Metropolitan Police’s decision to refer the cases to the Criminal Records Office amounted to confirmation that the law was broken, insisting that this was a matter for police to determine.He confirmed that the PM has not yet been informed whether he is to be fined or summoned for interview by officers in Operation Hillman. And asked if Mr Johnson would resign if he was found to have broken Covid laws, he replied only: “That is a hypothetical question.”The Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice campaign said it was now “crystal clear” that “whilst the British public rose to the challenge of making enormous sacrifices to protect their loved ones and their communities, those at 10 Downing Street failed”.Spokesperson Hannah Brady, whose father Shaun died aged 55 from Covid, said: “Frankly, bereaved families have seen enough. The PM should have resigned months ago over this. By dragging it out longer all he is doing is pouring more salt on the wounds of those who have already suffered so much.”In a statement, Scotland Yard said it will not reveal the identities of those fined, or even details of how many were found guilty of breaches in relation to each of the 12 events under investigation.It is not known whether the 20 cases relate to 20 different individuals, or whether particular ministers, advisers or officials have racked up a number of offences, which could lead to significantly higher fines.Downing Street said it had not been given the names of those involved and that they would not be required to inform their managers that they had been fined. In some case, officials may have to disclose fixed penalty notices for security vetting, depending on the level of their clearance.The Fair Trials campaign said that Downing Street staff were receiving different treatment from the many ordinary people who were “publicly named and shamed” after being found guilty of lockdown breaches without the opportunity to offer a defence in a questionnaire.Calling for a blanket amnesty and refunds of fines, the group’s Griff Ferris said: “Today’s announcement not only shows that they treated the public with contempt, but it calls into question the legitimacy of the coronavirus enforcement regime.”Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner said Johnson should resign now, declaring: “The buck stops with the prime minister.””After over two months of police time, 12 parties investigated and over 100 people questioned under caution, Boris Johnson’s Downing Street has been found guilty of breaking the law,” said Ms Rayner.”The culture is set from the very top. The buck stops with the prime minister, who spent months lying to the British public, which is why he’s got to go.”It is disgraceful that while the rest of the country followed their rules, Boris Johnson’s government acted like they didn’t apply to them.”This has been a slap in the face of the millions of people who made huge sacrifices.“Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey also called for Johnson to go.”If Boris Johnson thinks he can get away with Partygate by paying expensive lawyers and throwing junior staff to the wolves, he is wrong,” said Davey.”We all know who is responsible. The prime minister must resign, or Conservative MPs must sack him.”Conservative MPs who previously demanded the PM’s resignation if he was found to have breached Covid rules did not respond to requests from The Independent for comment, with many thought to be waiting for the full publication of a report into the affair by Whitehall civil servant Sue Gray.But former chief whip Mark Harper suggested that any staff found to have broken the law would have to quit, tweeting: “Officials and special advisers are bound by the Civil Service Code…which says you must comply with the law.”Mr Johnson’s spokesperson said that disciplinary action may result from the findings of Ms Gray’s report, but declined to say whether individuals who were fined could carry on working in No 10.“There are specific HR processes in place for individuals. I am not going get into what those entail in detail,” he saidThe 12 events under investigation by Operation Hillman include as many as six which Mr Johnson is said to have attended.Last week it emerged that detectives investigating alleged parties had begun interviewing key witnesses, after 100 questionnaires were sent out to people at the reported gatherings.Potential punishments for people found to have attended illegal parties vary according to the law that was in place at the time.The default fine during the alleged Number 10 garden gathering in May 2020 was £100, but the government then increased penalties.At the time of Downing Street events in November 2020, England was in the grip of a national lockdown that forbade gatherings of two or more people inside unless an exemption applied.By then, the default fine for breaching the law had doubled to £200 and unprecedented £10,000 fines had been introduced for people responsible for organising large gatherings involving 30 or more attendees.Covid laws changed as different “tiers” came into force in December 2020, when a series of alleged Christmas and leaving parties took place, but the same fine scheme was in place and large social gatherings were banned.In April 2021, when a leaving party was held in Downing Street on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral, indoor celebrations remained illegal.Default fines were £200 for Covid offences, but a new £800 fine had been introduced for people attending parties of more than 15 people, and organisers of large gatherings could still be fined £10,000.Announcing the new £800 fine in January 2021, Priti Patel had told a press conference they were necessary because there remained a “small minority that refuse to do the right thing”. 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The EU has launched a legal challenge against the UK over offshore wind farm subsidies – sending a formal complaint to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for the first time since Brexit.The European Commission claims new criteria brought in by Boris Johnson’s government related to offshore wind projects breaks agreed subsidy rules.Brussels told the WTO that the change means the UK is now favouring British companies using domestically-sourced wind turbines – rather the imported “content” – when it comes to subsidies.“This violates the WTO’s core tenet that imports must be able to compete on an equal footing with domestic products and harms EU suppliers,” the Commission stated.British officials were said to be puzzled at the timing of the move. “At a time when the West should be united in defeating Putin, this act of envy by Brussels is ill-judged ill-timed,” a Whitehall source told The Financial Times.They added: “We should be working together to strengthen European clean energy security – not fighting this out in court.”“Our policies to boost Britain’s offshore wind industry are comparable to many other schemes in the EU, so we are puzzled why Brussels are challenging our scheme when they do pretty much the same.”The UK government said it would “rigorously contest” the challenge, which the two sides have two months to reach an agreement on before the EU decides whether to ask the WTO for an arbitration panel.The row comes as the two sides remain at loggerheads over the Northern Ireland Protocol, with foreign secretary Liz Truss insisting that a suspension of agree trade arrangements for the province remains on the table.The UK also faces a hefty fine over a European court ruling that found the British government was negligent in allowing EU markets to be flooded with cheap Chinese-made clothes and shoes.The European Court of Justice found that Britain “failed to fulfil its obligations” on customs controls while an EU member by failing to “combat fraud” on footwear and textiles.Meanwhile, the director of the leading international affairs think tank Chatham House urged Mr Johnson’s government UK government to use its leading role in the Ukraine crisis to repair relations with the EU.“A more specific UK–EU dialogue on security could also emerge from the Russia–Ukraine crisis,” said Dr Robin Niblet, suggested London and Brussels could work more formally on defence areas such as cyber, intelligence and disinformation.Dr Niblet warned that the ongoing impasses over the protocol and other trade disputes could thwart the opportunity to worth together on more “critical” matters. “The risk remains that allowing these areas of dispute and friction in the economic sphere to persist, and possibly fester, will undermine both sides’ desire to forge a closer relationship on foreign and security policy – as is now even more critical,” he said.Ms Truss suggested at the weekend that the Ukraine crisis had put the protocol dispute in perspective. “The scale of the issue that we’re facing with Russia is so big, it’s so important, it’s so vital that we all stick together,” she told the Sunday Telegraph.The foreign secretary said the option of triggering Article 16 and suspending parts of the protocol remained an option, but added: “I am working to fix it as a matter of urgency.” More

First 20 fines to be issued over Westminster’s partygate scandalDowning Street has refused to say if Boris Johnson will resign if he is fined over lockdown-breaching parties at No 10 after the police announced it is issuing fines for 20 cases of lockdown breaches. Mr Johnson has not yet been informed whether he will receive a fine, his official spokesperson said but added that they are “committed” to ensuring the public is informed if the prime minister is given a penalty notice. Twelve events across Downing Street and Whitehall are being investigated between May 2020 and April 2021, six of which the prime minister is alleged to have attended. Labour has accused the prime minister of being “not fit to lead us” as Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader said the prime minister should resign if he is fined today for the partygate scandal.“If the prime minister is fined because he has broken his own rules then I think his position is untenable,” she said. In a statement, Scotland Yard said that cases were being referred today to the ACRO Criminal Records Office, which will have responsibility for issuing fixed penalty notices, which are set at £100 for the first offence. Show latest update

1648565321Matt Hancock says PM should not consider resigning if fined over PartygateFormer health secretary Matt Hancock said that Boris Johnson should not resign if he is fined by the Met Police over the lockdown-breaking parties held in No 10.Speaking to BBC News this afternoon, Mr Hancock added: “On Covid, the PM got the big calls right, if you think about it most countries are still in covid restrictions…we were one of the first countries out because of getting those calls right”Emily Atkinson29 March 2022 15:481648564321PM ‘unfit to lick boots of public’, says LammyShadow foreign secretary David Lammy has said that the prime minister is “unfit to lick the boots of the public” over the fines issued today over the string of lockdown-breaching parties held in Downing Street.Tweeting this afternoon, Mr Lammy said: “Boris Johnson said no one broke lockdown laws while boozing in Number 10 as the country stayed at home. “We all knew it, but the 20 police fines issued today are the final proof. He lied and lied and lied. It’s pathological. Unfit to lick the boots of the public.Emily Atkinson29 March 2022 15:321648563519Politics Explained: Will Boris Johnson survive Partygate despite police issuing fines?It should be a hugely significant event. Metropolitan Police detectives have concluded that the law was broken on numerous occasions at Downing Street and Whitehall departments during the Covid-19 crisis.Can Boris Johnson weather another storm? Click here for Adam Forrest’s mid-afternoon digest:Emily Atkinson29 March 2022 15:181648562531Fines show No 10 failed public, say bereaved familiesBereaved families who lost loved ones to Covid-19 have said that the fines issued to government officials today over the Partygate saga show that No 10 failed the public over the course of the pandemic.Hannah Brady, spokesperson for Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice, said: “A year down the line, far from offering closure, the prime minister’s team are being fined for breaking their own rules regularly and blatantly. The same rules that families across the country stuck with even when they suffered terribly as a consequence“It’s crystal clear now that whilst the British Public rose to the challenge of making enormous sacrifices to protect their loved ones and their communities, those at 10 Downing Street failed.“Frankly, bereaved families have seen enough. The PM should have resigned months ago over this. By dragging it out longer all he is doing is pouring more salt on the wounds of those who have already suffered so much.”Emily Atkinson29 March 2022 15:021648561859Simon Case should reveal fine if he gets one, says Adam WagnerHuman Rights barrister Adam Wagner tweeted that cabinet secretary Simon Case should reveal his fine if he is issued one. Maryam Zakir-Hussain29 March 2022 14:501648561259The Metropolitan Police has announced that 20 cases of lockdown breaches in Downing Street and Whitehall will be made the subject of fixed penalty notices, the first tranche of fines to be issued over the “Partygate” scandal that rocked Boris Johnson’s government this winter. My colleague Joe Sommerlad has more. Maryam Zakir-Hussain29 March 2022 14:401648560359Our home affairs editor Lizzie Dearden on why Covid ‘laws’ are wrongly being referred to as ‘rules’:Maryam Zakir-Hussain29 March 2022 14:251648559459What exactly have Boris Johnson and his officials said about social gatherings during the partygate saga?Take a look at our Twitter thread of what exactly the prime minister said about the lockdown-breaking parties when they came to surface.Maryam Zakir-Hussain29 March 2022 14:101648558259Labour MP Nadia Whittome joined the host of Labour politicians criticising the prime minister for “lies”. She said: The #partygate fines are more evidence of the PM’s lies, even if he isn’t given one. He lied when he said ‘all guidance was followed completely’. He lied when he said ‘there was no party’. He said he ‘must take responsibility’. If he doesn’t resign today it’s yet another lie.’” Maryam Zakir-Hussain29 March 2022 13:501648557659Daughter who lost her father to Covid says ‘the buck stops with Boris Johnson’A woman who lost her father to Covid-19 has said “the buck stops with Boris Johnson“ after it was announced the first 20 fines will be issued over alleged lockdown-busting parties in Downing Street and Whitehall.Safiah Ngah, from Islington, north London, lost her father Zahari Ngah, 68, to coronavirus in February 2021.The 29-year-old said it was “really frustrating and it makes me incredibly angry that we even have to hear that the Government didn’t take their own rules seriously.“I think there’s a real discrepancy between the way that the public viewed the pandemic and the way that the Government viewed it, and it really feels like they were just taking it as a bit of a joke.“I think that the buck stops with Boris Johnson. It’s absolutely his responsibility and as the leader, he should take responsibility for what goes wrong.”Maryam Zakir-Hussain29 March 2022 13:40 More

The Metropolitan Police has announced that 20 cases of lockdown breaches in Downing Street and Whitehall will be made the subject of fixed penalty notices, the first tranche of fines to be issued over the “Partygate” scandal that rocked Boris Johnson’s government this winter.The Met said it would not disclose the identities of the recipients of the fines, although Mr Johnson’s office has said it will reveal whether or not the prime minister himself has received one and, so far, has not done so.The force said officers were working through a “significant amount of investigative material” as part of its probe into 12 social events that took place in Westminster between 2020 and 2021 while the rest of the country was living under strict social restrictions in order to hold back the coronavirus pandemic, unable to go to work, meet friends or attend to ailing loved ones in many instances.Mr Johnson is alleged to have attended at least six of the 12 gatherings under scrutiny and is one of over 100 people, along with his wife Carrie Johnson and Cabinet secretary Simon Case, who were recently asked to complete a questionnaire about the affair by officers.More fines could follow as the investigation continues (promising further waves of bad publicity for the government), two months after senior civil servant Sue Gray submitted evidence she had compiled to the Met in the course of carrying out her own internal inquiry into Partygate, a scandal that placed Mr Johnson’s premiership in severe jeopardy before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February allowed him to play the great statesman on the world stage and drove the matter from the media spotlight.Only a brief, redacted version of Ms Gray’s report has appeared so far, in which she diagnosed a “failure of leadership” on the government’s part for allowing an informal party culture to develop at Downing Street in blithe indifference to the rules the government had set for the electorate to live by, resulting in secretive “bring your own booze” garden parties, birthday celebrations and “wine time Fridays”.Labour Party deputy leader Angela Rayner appeared on Sky News on Tuesday morning and repeated her demand that Mr Johnson resign if he is ultimately fined for his part in breaching Covid-19 regulations, arguing that his position would be “untenable”, a call a number of Mr Johnson’s fellow Conservatives supported earlier this year and may back again.But the prime minister has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, admitting he attended one Downing Street bash but “believed implicitly that it was a work event” and has expressed disgust over a video obtained by ITV News of his own staff appearing to mock the suggestion that they had held clandestine Christmas parties, an incident that led to the tearful resignation of top aide Allegra Stratton in December.The recipient of a fixed penalty notice for breaching Covid restrictions will be fined £100 for a first offence, rising to £200 if they fail to pay it within 14 days.The extent of the fine issued doubles with each further breach of the laws up to a maximum of £10,000.If someone chooses to contest the notice, police will then review the case and decide whether to withdraw it or take the matter to court.The administration of fines is dealt with by Acro, the criminal records office for England and Wales, which receives and processes the payments required.A fixed penalty notice is reserved for only minor offences, like parking violations, and is not considered a caution or a criminal violation so will not land the recipient with a criminal record, although it can be recorded on the Police National Computer for future reference.Non-payment of the fine could result in prosecution, however. More

The UK is entering a “new phase” in its supply of military equipment to Ukraine, as it provides kit which will help the country’s defenders regain territory from the faltering Russian invaders, cabinet has been told.Downing Street declined to say what new equipment will be sent to president Volodymyr Zelensky’s government, but indicated that it will not include tanks or other materiel which might escalate the crisis by being viewed by Moscow as offensive, rather than defensive.But Boris Johnson’s official spokesperson said the UK was “considering all possible options when it comes to making sure the Ukrainian government have what they need to defend themselves”.In a phone call with other leaders the Quint group – the US, UK, France, Germany and Italy – on Tuesday, Mr Johnson will urge allies to step up their military, diplomatic and economic support for Kyiv.Mr Johnson told this morning’s weekly meeting of cabinet that a Russian ceasefire would not be enough for the UK to ease its sanctions on Vladimir Putin’s regime.He declined to set a threshold for relaxing sanctions, but pointed to a recent article in which foreign secretary Liz Truss said it must involve at least a ceasefire and withdrawal of troops from Ukrainian territory.Joint Intelligence Committee chair Sir Simon Gass briefed cabinet that Putin’s ambition swiftly to conquer Ukraine and topple its government had failed “due to staunch opposition, poor planning and defensive support provided by countries like the UK,” said Mr Johnson’s official spokesperson.He added that Putin’s regime was “seeking to apportion blame for that failure and there were ongoing reports of poor morale and military failures”.Chief of defence staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin told the meeting that the UK was “heading for a new phase in its support for Ukraine as the Ukrainian army sought to defend and regain territory”.Asked what form this new phase of support will take, Mr Johnson’s spokesperson told reporters: “It was reflecting that the Ukrainian government and the Ukrainian military have different asks of us as we provide further defensive military capability.“Obviously they are in a different place in their situation. There was the invasion and now they are seeking to defend and also regain territory.”He added: “What we want to do is make sure that we are responding to what President Zelensky requires, what the Ukrainian government requires to defend its country – and they are being extremely successful in that, in part because of some of the equipment we are providing.“Now we are looking at what further equipment and what capabilities we can provide, but I’m not going to get into what that might be.”Cautioning against any suggestion that the UK might provide battle tanks to the Ukrainian army, as President Zelensky has requested, he added: “We would do nothing that would have an escalatory effect.” More

The government is to promote “career opportunities” in picking fruit and vegetables in an attempt to stop produce going unharvested on British farms, a minister has said.A shortage of seasonal agricultural labour prompted largely by Brexit saw crops rotting in the fields last year after EU workers stayed away – with UK farmers losing millions of pounds.Now ministers say the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will team up with the Department for Work and Pensions “to raise awareness of career opportunities” in the sector among British workers.Opposition politicians said ministers were responsible for the shortages by making it harder for farmers to recruit from Europe, and claimed there is now no real plan to make up the shortfall. In response to a question from peers about how to avoid a repeat of last year, agriculture minister Lord Benyon said: “The government recognises the importance of a reliable source of labour for crop picking and packing, and that it is a key part of bringing in the harvest for the horticultural sector. “Defra is working closely with industry and other government departments to understand labour supply and demand, and to help our world-leading growers access the labour they need to ensure our crops are picked and not left unharvested.”The minister said the government had extended visas for seasonal workers from other countries and acknowledged “the sector’s reliance on foreign workers”, with 30,000 available.But he added: “Defra is also working with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions to raise awareness of career opportunities within the food and farming sectors among UK workers.”The government says the industry also has to do more to attract UK workers with better “training, career options, wage increases and to invest in increased automation technology”.The minister’s comment came in response to a written parliamentary question by cross bencher Baroness Kennedy, who urged ministers to explain “what plans they have to ensure that in summer 2022 fruit and vegetables in the UK will not be left unharvested”.The renewed push comes after the government’s Pick For Britain campaign flopped and was scrapped after just 12 months. Ministers spent £30,000 promoting the scheme, which failed to recruit its target of 60,000 willing British volunteers to save country’s crops during Covid pandemic.The waste of the thousands of tonnes of unharvested food comes at a time of rising prices and increasing cost of living. The annual rate of inflation across the economy was 6.2 per cent in February 2022, a 30-year high.Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrats’ food and rural affairs spokesperson said: “British farmers produce some of the best food in the world, yet the Tories seem happy for another summer of fruit and veg rotting in our fields – despite Putin’s war in Ukraine threatening to starve us of food from abroad.“It was always reprehensible for Conservative Ministers to cause these shortages by making it harder for British farmers to recruit the workers they need. It’s even more unforgivable that they still don’t have anything approaching a plan to solve them.“Ministers must get a grip or start looking for new career opportunities of their own.” More