Curry House Closures

EDM number 969 in 2015-16, proposed by Greg Mulholland on 19/01/2016.
Categorised under the topics of Food, Immigration, Pay and Service industries.

That this House notes there are an estimated 12,000 curry restaurants and takeaways across the UK, employing more than 100,000 people in an industry worth £4.2 billion to the economy; further notes research from Nationwide that the average home spends £1,355 a year on curries and that, according to National Curry Week, 23 million people eat curry every year; believes that the curry has become a core part of British cuisine since the first curry house opened in Britain in 1810; commends generations of Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis who have brought their wonderful cuisine to Britain; expresses concern that on average two curry houses a week are now closing; notes that a strong factor behind this trend is the Home Office's Tier 2 visa scheme which caps the number of visas awarded to non-EU workers every year at 20,700; further notes that qualifying for a Tier 2 visa requires a job paying £20,800, but, with chefs being on the Government’s Shortage Occupation List, the salary threshold is significantly higher at £29,750 after deductions for accommodation and food; notes that the average salary for a chef is £24,745; believes it is therefore extremely difficult to hire skilled curry house chefs from abroad; notes that Government measures to plug the skills gap domestically have not worked; calls on Government to look at lowering the Tier 2 visa scheme's minimum salary requirement for chefs to enable easier recruitment from abroad and therefore give Britain's curry houses a much needed boost.

This motion has been signed by a total of 25 MPs.