The Real Scandal? There Isn't Enough Immigration

Immigration is a good thing

- JAMES MOORE

With Rishi Sunak said to be under pressure after immigration hit a record high of 606,000, partly because of the (popular) decision to help people fleeing the conflict in Ukraine, that needs to be said. Unequivocally and without qualification.

The fact is we’d be in deep trouble without it. It’s a common trope to suggest that immigrants are taking jobs from Britons, but that is tommyrot. The most recent official labour force survey found that Britain had 1,083,000 vacancies, a year-onyear decrease of 55,000 but still 282,000 more than before the pandemic.

There were only 1.2 candidates for every vacancy, a staggering shortfall, and that is before we get to the question of suitability. Many jobs require specialist skills and Britain has shortages there too. Chronic ones. What’s more, many jobs are also challenging and difficult and thus aren’t attractive to the domestic workforce.

Take working in the agricultural sector. Homegrown food? A fine idea. Of course it is. But an under-reported scandal is the fact that it is being allowed to rot in the fields. A survey by the National Farmers Union found £22m worth of fruit and vegetables was wasted because of workforce shortages in the first half of 2022 alone. But the study only covered around a third of Britain’s horticulture sector. The NFU puts the overall value at more than £60m.