CHEF SHORTAGE CRIPPLING CURRY INDUSTRY IN BRITAIN
By Dipankar De Sarkar, London, February 13, 2008 (IANS)

The multibillion-pound curry industry in Britain is facing ruin because of a crippling shortage of workers in the kitchen fuelled by harsh immigration rules that favour East Europeans over South Asians, a leading immigration body said. The curry industry is said to employ some 80,000 people in 10,000 restaurants across Britain and is said to be worth at least 3.5 billion pounds ($6.8 billion) when catering, ready meals and ingredients are taken into account.

Under current rules, restaurant owners cannot bring over trained chefs from non-European countries. Importing chefs is covered under tier-3 of a new Points Based System (PBS), under which employers have to pay a certain amount of money to bring over chefs, who are classed as low-skilled workers.

"Despite many meetings with the Immigration Minister who states that he understands the plight of this important industry to the UK, nothing is being done to improve the situation," said Keith Best, chief executive of the Immigration Advisory Service. Best, who this week met restaurant owners banded under the Greater Sylhet Development and Welfare Council, said the shortage of curry chefs follows current and proposed immigration rules that make hiring in South Asia difficult.

Best, a former MP, said he has been told the government has no plans to ease restrictions until at least the end of December. "Such delay and lack of appreciation of the crisis facing the industry could do it irreparable damage and, in so doing, cause disappointment to many British residents."

"For many low-income families the only chance they have of eating out is to go for a curry. The late (foreign secretary) Robin Cook described the British national dish as chicken tikka masala."

Best said plans to fill curry kitchens with Bulgarians and Romanians had failed because eastern Europeans have "no cultural sensitivity or understanding" of the curry industry.

"It is a sad comment on government policy that it favours eastern Europeans over citizens of Commonwealth countries such as Bangladesh whose preceding generations have contributed so much to the British economy and continue to do so," he added.

In response to Best's complaints a Border and Immigration Agency spokesperson said: "Our objective is to manage migration in the national interest, striking the right balance between safeguarding the interests of the UK resident work force and enabling UK employers to recruit or transfer skilled people from abroad in order to help them compete effectively in an international market.

"The new Points Based System for managing migration will simplify the rules, ensuring that that those with the right skills to benefit Britain can come here to contribute. We have also established the Migration Impacts Forum to enable us to take account of the impact of migration on local areas and services.

"The recently established Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) will advise Ministers on where migration might sensibly fill gaps in the labour market. The MAC has already started work on the first shortage occupation list for skilled employment which it aims to publish in June."