Gloucestershire farmer claims picking season is under threat

A farmer who supplies supermarkets has warned that this year's picking season will be difficult because of a shortage of oversea workers.

He is calling on the government to extend the amount of time seasonal staff are allowed to stay in the UK.

Martin Haines said he lost more than half of his permanent staff at Castle Gardens in Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire, after Brexit.

He claims the six-month temporary visas do not go far enough.

"We go up from 10-12 staff to somewhere around 150. They're restricted for six months but we have nine to 10 months work," explained Martin Haines who runs WR Haines in Gloucestershire.

He said producers, along with the National Farmers Union (NFU), are pushing for the government to extend the visas to cover nine months.

"The visa means they have to sit at home for five months before they can come back.

"We're very happy to have them, we need them.

"We aren't able to find enough local people to do the harvesting and the work. Having to train new people each time is a cost."

Magda came to work in the UK from Poland 12 years ago and now has settled status. She said post-Brexit documentation requirements had made it harder for some workers to come.

"People were worried [after Brexit] that people might not like us," she said.

"It's hard to get enough people for the work, but for those that decided to stay it's not a big change."

The government said it had increased the number seasonal workers that can work in the UK to 45,000 this year, with an option of another 10,000 should demand call for it.

But it said it currently has no plans to extend the six-month limit.

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