Immigration rules hitting restaurants

Curry houses will be forced to shut their doors unless Government gets a grip on the immigration system, ministers have been warned.

The curry industry is feeling frustrated and has been threatened by severe staff shortages and desperately needs clarity from the Government over a solution, Tory MP Anne Main said.

Speaking in a debate about the future of the industry, the St Albans MP said the newly-introduced points-based system has “disproportionately” affected the industry. Under the system, which came into force at the end of February, chefs need to speak English and have academic qualifications to live and work in the UK, she told MPs.

Mrs Main said: “It is estimated that the staff shortages will cost restaurants an average of £19,000 turnover every year. The points-based system works against the industry.

“It is impossible to show formal recognisable catering academic qualifications obtained in Bangladesh — that doesn’t mean they aren’t skilled chefs, they just can’t prove it.

“The Bangladesh Caterers’ Association says this has left its members unable to recruit trained Bangladeshi cooks and critically short of staff, threatening the future of the industry.”

Mrs Main called on Government to support calls from the industry to set up a London Curry College.

She added: “The industry itself recognises it cannot keep importing its chefs and must have a sustainable solution to what is a long-term problem.

“They are caught between an inability to import talent and an inability to showcase their industry in colleges.”

Skills minister Sion Simon said it was an important issue, both culturally and economically, and he would be happy to make sure the establishment of a London catering college is on the agenda of the government-sponsored but industry-led ethnic chefs summit later this year.

But he added: “There are many women in the British Bangladeshi community who would welcome the opportunity of a job.

“Many of them are already very skilled cooks. Sometimes they are held back by lack of language skills. The Bangladeshi restaurant industry should not overlook these women as a source of potential recruits.”