Mr. Niall McCormack:

Frankly the work permit scheme at the moment is not working. If you look for a work permit for someone in horticulture now, you will find they are all used up. We are talking about a perishable product. For many farms, 45% of their turnover is labour. We are not at the stage with robots yet. It is maybe 20 years down the line. We are probably down the food chain when it comes to attracting staff because we are out in all types of weather and everything. For horticulture to arrest the decline and move forward, labour must be looked at. There was a scheme during Covid - the help to harvest scheme - but it did not work. The reality is we need a proper bespoke, fit-for-purpose work permit scheme or we will go absolutely nowhere in the horticulture industry.