Effect of Brexit during a pandemic
Consequences The UK government’s decision to continue Brexit despite the COVID-19 pandemic is being debated in the Scottish Parliament.
The Scottish Government is proposing urgent changes to the immigration system and urges the UK Government to immediately introduce a new temporary labor route to address acute labor shortages.
The failure to introduce such a system has led to challenges in areas such as hospitality recruitment, distribution, social welfare, construction, food production, agriculture and tourism.
The route was first proposed to block the post-Brexit “rock edge” for employers who were dependent on free movement — the Scottish Government believes it should be implemented immediately and extended to 24 months, allowing workers to switch routes once they are in the country and get a job. .
Before the debate in the Scottish Parliament, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Angus Robertson said:
“The policy of the British government to engage in Brexit in the midst of a public health crisis is now damaging recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, an unfortunate situation.
“As we present in our presentation today, Scottish Ministers have repeatedly warned the UK Government of the effects of the reckless practice of hard Brexit at the height of a global pandemic, the end of freedom of movement and the drastic restrictions on the current immigration system.
“We are now seeing this impact on the resulting shortage of labor and supply.
“The negative consequences of Scotland’s exit from the EU are many, but the installation of a temporary work route will alleviate some of the damage done by recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Today in Parliament, we argue that Scotland’s future as a nation should not be jeopardized by Brexit, which it did not vote for, nor harm it because the Scottish Parliament did not agree to it. It should be decided by the people of Scotland. “
Source: Scottish Government