Brexit and strawberries

I was in Angus today at the invitation of the local MSP Graeme Dey. Some time ago he asked me to visit Angus Soft Fruits, a market leader in this rapidly expanding and important sector , to hear at firsthand the difficulties that were likely to be caused by Brexit and in particular by the ending of freedom of movement.

With over a thousand EU nationals working in the business at various times of the year it is obvious that a hard Brexit will be disastrous. In addition the anxiety and insecurity for staff and management alike is palpable, something I also discovered later in the day when I met with a group of students and staff at Dundee and Angus College who were also from other EU countries.

The UK Government has done virtually nothing to reassure such people who are making significant contributions to our country and who should never have been treated in this way. Several spoke strongly of feeling unwanted and fearful and whilst the Scottish Government is doing everything in its power to help it is Westminster ( now consumed by an utterly unnecessary election campaign) which must step up to the plate and provide support, reassurance and clarity. However it has proved , and is proving , virtually impossible for us to elicit even the most basic of information from London.

I will make these points yet again when intra UK negotiations resume - another fact that we don't know. The JMC (EN) which is the main negotiating body within these islands has not met since mid February despite a U.K. assurance at the start of the process that it would meet monthly. Meanwhile our civil servants have been told by their London counterparts not to expect another meeting till end June or early July.

( I have tweeted pictures from both meeting with EU nationals as have others. This picture of early fruiting strawberries at Easter Seaton is the result of a tip from Allan , the Manager who showed us round echoed by the MD, Lochy Porter. The best way to judge the crop , they said, is to look underneath - and by the way, they tasted just as good as they look ).