LABOUR AND SKILLS SHORTAGE INTENSIFIED BY BREXIT

I was delighted to secure a debate on the important matter of skills and labour shortages across the UK - a matter that affects every single sector of our economy and every area of our lives.

We see these shortages in all areas, although particularly in health and social care. These shortages result in significant strains being consequently placed on service levels and supply chains, and members of existing workforces leaving due to the detrimental impact of prolonged staff shortages on their own wellbeing.

The fallout from Brexit has been one of the key drivers of the shortage of labour and skills across our economy. Indeed, many foreign-born workers from the UK have left the UK since Brexit, and even if those workers wanted to return to the UK, many will find themselves unable to do so because of the UK’s restrictive post-Brexit immigration policies.

The Government’s current measures are inadequate to address the scale of the workforce challenges in the UK. I therefore urged the Government to take a common-sense approach, for the benefit of our economic prosperity, and establish a Scottish Visa, so that those who wish to live in Scotland and contribute to its workforce may do so and we do not suffer from a one-size-fits-all UK approach.