so, when will you be starting stockpiling I wonder?

I think that if anyone is worried about being surrounded by floods or being snowed in in the winter, it's sensible to keep a supply of food in the cupboard but panic buying and emptying the shelves because of fears of supply chain difficulties after Brexit is wrong.

Why has there been a huge increase in strawberry farms?

We still import them too. Seems a bit wacky to me.

Wacky as in asking for trouble.

POGS
Thank you for your posting 31/08/2018 19:52
This concurs exactly with what i have been saying for years. In addition to the importation of cheap labour and those consequences, there has been the decimation of skilled and semi-skilled apprenticeships for our kids (particularly vicationally inclined boys). Why would a company invest in a youngster for three or four years when they can have a plane full of already trained employees from Eastern Europe, yes they were/are concientious workers who will accept minimum wager and very friendly folk too. I knew the EU party would end eventually and foresaw the issues re skills so many years ago, however i suppose 'if the cash machine is giving free money, many will not look to the day it empties, and the profit driven organisations milked the situation for all its worth. My ire lies with these organisations now crying lack of workers...lack of skills. Whose blooming fault is that!
Did you watch the BBC2 programme the Factory from the Heck Sausage factory. It was almost fully manned by workers from Eastern Europe.

Joelsnan

Hi. No I didn't watch it.

I think what some of us have been trying to say for so long is there are pockets of employment , not only in the UK, that has hit the lower paid employment jobs harshly due to the Posted Workers Directive and the repercussions manifested themselves at the time of the Referendum.

I have immigrant friends and acquaintances and a couple of immigrants ( for the purpose of the thread I will call them that ) who have joined our family and they understand the problems and accept the issue and like myself worry it is unsustainable in so many ways.

I also accept alongside the problem of ' some ' companies/ employers who have taken full advantage of the Posted Workers Directive or callously used dubious methods to reduce labour costs in employees wages we also have a big problem in the UK in that we also have a nucleus of people who could work but do not ' choose ' to work and the immigrant who comes to our country to live, work and abide by our laws is a God send .

I know you will agree when I say it is not the fault of the hard working immigrants who choose to live and work in another country to provide for themselves and family but it has been the succession of bad decisions made by the EU Commission/Parliament that has put the politics of a Federal Europe dogma/politics before the basic needs of a country to provide primary for their own people when it comes to jobs , the backbone of a nation.

It is a fact that the UK is in the same boat as other EU countries who are seeing jobs go to other countries and people wonder why there is a rise , a backlash against the EU. In my opinion the EU will be lucky to ride this problem out, I think it will but the day may well dawn when the wealthier EU countries have to deal with the problems the UK has faced up to.

Whether the decision to Leave the EU was a right or wrong decision is not my point, it is understanding how the result came about for other reasons than than the usual xenophobic/racist/unintelligent knew know better .

POGS
Yes indeed.
Highlighting the way that some rich EU countries have basically contrived to use cheap skilled labour both to the detriment to their own citizens and those of the countries they exploit has been another of my concerns. Yes these countries have received funding to improve infrastructure and build manufacturing depots. But often the infrastructure is roads to carry the cheaper produced goods without raising the real living standards of the producing countries.

Quite agree.

joelanan
Your post reminded me of the poly tunnel cities in Andalusia. All built along side the motorways where it's non stop to Calais.
If more 'virtual signallers' could see the conditions these people live in they might think twice about getting their strawberries and lollo Rosso on demand.

If you have Facebook, here are "three blokes in a pub" (actually three experts who are having a pint) discussing international deliveries in the event of a "no-deal" on Brexit.
www.facebook.com/thatgingerscouser/videos/10156294488945042/?t=217

I learned much from that Elegran, thank you

Joelsnan, POGS I agree with both your posts.

It is not the fault of the imported workers, but the system. UK young people/students do not want to pick fruit etc in their holidays, they do not want to work in sausage factory's (inside the factory program). A stigma seems to have grown around certain jobs including serving in restaurants/coffee shops.

The avocado generation may panic because they cannot get whatever vegetables or fruit they want, when they want it.

Our family try our best to eat seasonally, and look forward to the change in seasons and the change in veggies and fruits, which in turn leads to a variety in meals eaten.

It may not just be the "avocado generation" who panic if brexit happens

The avocado generation
Oh dear, that could be me
I never thought of avocados being unavailable.
Perhaps I could grow some in my conservatory.

UK young people/students do not want to pick fruit etc in their holidays, they do not want to work in sausage factory's (inside the factory program). A stigma seems to have grown around certain jobs including serving in restaurants/coffee shops.
I have always found that really interesting, because UK young people/students are quite happy to go to eg Australia to pick their fruit and vegetables, work in their coffee shops/hostels etc.
Australian farmers find it quite difficult to recruit and keep local labour to pick the fruit and vegetables over there.

Why should this be so? It's not because the wages are low - they are not.

Jalima My theory on them doing those jobs abroad but not in UK is that they do not consider them 'proper jobs'.
They are more than happy to do them whilst traveling as a way to subsidise their gap year.

As for the Aussie situation, it's a rite of passage for the youngsters to travel (have family down under) and see the world.

It is also our experience that young, local, unemployed Australians are reluctant to do this work - or are not much use if they do!

Young Australians like coming over here and working in bars.

I feel that it has become essential that some form of certainty has to be brought to the Brexit situation and quickly. Whatever has gone on in the past in regards to Britain's relations with the EU is now "water under the bridge", and we are where we are and we have to go forward from here as a country.

I am someone who voted remain in the referendum but like many, I feel that the UK is now spiralling towards "no deal" Brexit which if the country is not prepared adequately for will have catastrophic repercussions for not just the economy but also for social order within the UK.

I believe that at the very minimum having a customs agreement with the EU will be essential to Britain on leaving Europe. However, that will only be forthcoming if the UK agrees to free movement of labour in regard to EU workers coming to the UK. I feel the insistence on that free movement by the European Union is not that they wish to make leaving difficult for Britain, but that movement is one of the four freedoms that the entire European Union is based upon, with the others being the free movement of goods, capital and services.

Therefore, the European Union cannot compromise on a customs agreement for Britain without the free movement of labour, just as the UK cannot compromise on not accepting that free movement being that immigration played such a large part in the referendum campaign agenda of both sides.

The above I feel has set the UK on the road to "crashing out" of the EU which seems to be a situation that has gone unrecognised within the country since the morning the referendum result was declared. In that, Britain has built up close economic ties with the European Union in its over forty years of membership. That situation is especially prevalent in the manufacturing and the transport industries which has given rise to forecasts of severe job losses along with transport infrastructure failure to which the government seems to be unable to give any reassurance by way of rebutting those forecasts.

In the past few days, media reports have spoken of the plans for the government to declare a state of emergency which would be required for the military to assist the transport industry in the event of a crisis. We also have seen in the media plans given under the freedom of information act that set out the requirements the local, district and county councils have in hand in the event of civil unrest due to Brexit.

We have also witnessed in media reports and in threads such as this the first reports of people looking to protect themselves in the event of transport failure(s) by stocking up on preserved foods etc. Criticising such action will make no difference as when the certainties we have long known are certainties no more, people will react as they see fit oblivious to what anyone else may say.

However, what we have not seen in all the above is any real leadership in the country from ether of the two main political parties. Far from even attempting to provide such leadership our politicians on all sides take a long holiday that will not see the House of Commons back in full session until almost October. Many including myself see that as totally disgusting in the face of a peacetime crisis which is seen as unmatched in Britain since the second world war.

I believe what we are witnessing in Britain is the total failure of our Democracy with little sign the situation is likely to improve as we approach Brexit now only eight months away.

I expect there will be much going on behind the scenes that you (or anyone) doesn’t get to see Grandad1943 and therefore that gloomy prognosis should be put on ice.

Far from even attempting to provide such leadership our politicians on all sides take a long holiday
I am not sure that they will all be taking 'a holiday' in the accepted sense of the word, though, Grandad.

So much pessimism in what is nothing more than the 'Tango to the finale'

How many other trade negotiations have been expected to be played out in such a public arena. Maybe we should insist the world adopts our negotiating demands and publish everything on the table. Then we could do away with all of international trade spies

I think automated picking is already on the way Baggs. I’m sure that I saw an article on tv about it

How many other trade negotiations have been expected to be played out in such a public arena.

There aren't any trade negotiations with the EU going on at the moment. We're still trying to reach a Withdrawal Agreement. No trade negotiations until that is done.

I really hope that the the UK negotiators are keeping their cards close to their chests.

If all was out in the public domain the negotiations would be negated. Brexit has basically been reduced to a poker game!! "Who blinks first" looses the most.

Whatever way we voted, the vote has been and gone and we have to 'big up' our position , play our best hand and get on with negotiations.

No amount of moralising or raking over EU directives, Civil Service leaks etc. are helpful.

Well said GrannyGravy