Vets join call for skilled worker visa re-think
Since it was announced in last year, we've been warning that the Government's new £38,700 minimum salary requirement for skilled worker visas will cause major problems for industries across the board. Now the new rule is live, we're hearing more and more calls for a re-think, including from HSBC, Deloittes and KPMG this week. Closer to home, the British Veterinary Association and Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons have also raised the red flag by writing to Steve Barclay entreating him to reconsider the changes.
With a sharp decline in the number of vets coupled with a sharp rise in the amount of work for them to do post-Brexit, the profession is facing a critical staffing issue. We advocated recently for a review into the role of vets in the food supply chain to enable suitably qualified meat inspectors to perform certain administrative tasks to take the pressure off Official Veterinarians. From an article published in The House magazine, it seems that others may be coming round to a similar idea. For all in meat processing, this is an interesting read.