Immigration: Sensible proposal by Holyrood, bizarre rejection from Westminster

Sensible solutions, however, seem not to matter one whit these days to the Conservative Government at Westminster, particularly when it comes to matters such as immigration on which it is ideologically hidebound.

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The need for an antidote to the poisonous post-Brexit clampdown on immigration is plain to anyone with an objective view, given massive labour and skills shortages in rural and remote areas (where they have been felt acutely) and across many sectors all over the country.

Of course, the solution has to be far wider than the rural visa scheme, but that would be a good start.

Sadly, however, the UK Government’s rejection of the plan put forward to it by Ms Gougeon was not surprising.

In fact, it would have been astonishing if the UK Government had declared that it was proceeding with the proposal or even examining it in detail, given the hard line on immigration taken by the Tory Brexiters. Not to mention the Conservatives’ attitude towards the current Holyrood administration.

However, the justification of the refusal was somewhat jaw-dropping, even taking into account the point that it would have been difficult to come up with any sensible grounds for rejecting the proposal, from an economic and societal standpoint.

The UK Government might have taken the time to reflect on the reality of post-Brexit life for remote and rural businesses which had for years and in many cases decades been able to rely on the labours and skills of workers from the European Union and broader European Economic Area. Free movement of people between the UK and EEA countries helped enable these businesses to prosper and generate wealth for the fragile communities in which they are based, to the benefit of the local economy and residents.

Staggeringly we now have a Conservative Party, which would likely still claim to be pro-business in spite of all the evidence to the contrary, which seems not to be interested in the reality of what its hard Brexit has done to the likes of the tourism and food manufacturing sectors in remote and rural places.

The Conservative Government surely could not claim to be unaware of the situation given the robustness of the feedback it has had, and the crystal clarity of this.

Veteran hotelier Paddy Crerar told The Herald in February: “I find myself more furious by the day on how predictably short-sighted it was for those who chose to ignore simple obvious facts and the inescapable consequences of the ‘get Brexit done’ decision to halt migration.”

The hotelier, who founded and chairs Crerar Hotels, declared: “There never was a position, certainly in Scotland, where EU workers were taking jobs or undercutting the wages of the indigenous UK labour pool. The fact was, and remains, that we simply don’t have enough people in our country for the work that needs done without immigration.”

Mr Crerar added: “With pockets of exceptions, locally, Scotland had an effective zero unemployment rate – the Highlands and Islands in particular found sourcing labour and specifically seasonal labour a near-impossible task before Brexit. Now, post-Brexit and following the return home of most of the EU workforce, across the UK it’s now impossible in true terms to source enough labour – skilled or unskilled – to deliver on the services businesses like ours must provide to be a success.

“Our hotels ran light on occupancy last year not through lack of demand but simply as, irrespective of wage levels offered, we were unable to employ enough people to fully run each business – an experience that we [in] the hospitality sector have all cried tears of real frustration over.”

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Aberlour-based Walker’s Shortbread has ever since 2016 been flagging the Brexit effect on labour.

And director Jim Walker told The Herald last week: “This summer and last summer, we were really about 200 people short, both years. Our existing workforce have done their best to work longer hours and [at] weekends. We have put on night shifts where necessary. But it has been very difficult.

“[It is] just a shortage of labour and I think all food manufacturers are in a similar situation, as are hotels.”

He added: “We have got lots of hotels up here [which] just can’t get staff, particularly in a small environment like this. There is not a big population. In the past few years there has been no unemployment – [it has been] next to nothing.”

This is a remarkably similar analysis to that provided by Mr Crerar. The businesses operate in very different sectors but have the same stories to tell about the difficulties of finding workers in remote and rural areas, post-Brexit.

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Both Mr Crerar and Mr Walker are immersed in the day-to-day realities of their businesses. They know exactly what is going on, and why.

Ms Gougeon and the Scottish Government seem to get it too. Not the Conservative Government at Westminster though.

The Scottish Government noted its rural visa proposal, which it said “requires to be implemented by the UK Government”, is modelled on the “successful Canadian Atlantic Immigration Program”.

Setting out the details of its proposal last month, the Scottish Government declared the scheme would allow rural and remote communities to “attract migrants in line with their distinct needs”.

It added that participating employer-sponsors within designated geographic areas would advertise vacancies. Employers and communities would then be able to assess prospective candidates, before recommending chosen candidates to the Home Office for final approval and security checks.

Once a decision was approved, community partners – including employers, and local statutory and third-sector services – would “offer a package of integrated settlement support services for newcomers”, the Scottish Government noted.

Participating employers, in collaboration with Scottish Government and UK Government organisations, would also “have responsibility for ensuring that terms and conditions of the scheme continued to be met”, under the proposal.

Ms Gougeon, at the time she sent her letter to Secretary of State for the Home Department Suella Braverman late last month, said: “The proposal sets out exactly how a bespoke immigration solution could be delivered at a local level in Scotland, now. These are interventions that can work in Scotland, just as they have worked in Canada.

“We believe that an independent Scotland would be best placed to deliver an immigration system which would meet Scotland’s needs. But employers, businesses, and communities are all telling us that actions are needed now.”

She added: “That is why we are calling upon the UK Government to make the required reforms to its ‘one size fits all’ immigration system with immediate effect, to avoid ongoing and further damage being done to Scotland.”

Regardless of anyone’s view on the Scottish constitutional question, the need for urgent action is indeed clear.

However, as observed already, apparently not to the UK Government.

A UK Government spokesman declared: “Immigration is a UK Government reserved matter and the points-based immigration system works in the interest of the whole of the UK.”

The second part of this statement is so ridiculous an assertion as to be almost funny. However, this is no laughing matter.

The spokesman added: “Depopulation in Scotland is neither caused nor can be remedied by immigration…Investment in jobs and infrastructure – which devolved administrations have powers to address – must be considered.”

This deflection is lamentable. Mr Crerar and Mr Walker and many other business leaders are telling it as it is. However, the UK Government simply does not want to listen.