Farmers 'between rock and hard place' over housing

Applications for improved staff accommodation have been rejected by the planning committee putting farms "between a rock and a hard place", the head of Jersey's farmers' union has said.

Union president Doug Richardson said although farmers still used portable cabins for seasonal workers, it was difficult for farms to improve housing for them.

The questions come after George Castrudes, 37, died when a fire he lit to keep warm in his portable cabin at La Valette nursery in Grouville got out of control.

Following his death, a coroner called on politicians to look into the conditions farmworkers lived in and whether farmers were still using portable cabins as accomodation.

Richardson said there had been planning applications for the complete replacement of existing cabins with new ones but these had been refused due to a requirement the accommodation be placed in a built-up area.

"In other words, in town, which you can't have on a farm," he said.

Richardson added: "We're constantly between a rock and a hard place - we're doing our best, but unfortunately the planning laws are a challenge and so it's extremely difficult to get anything passed."

The government has been approached for comment regarding rejected applications.

At the inquest into Castrudes' death in February, Infrastructure and Environment said its regulation officials would "always support tenants and landlords across the island to ensure all rental accommodation meets the standards designed to protect health, safety, and wellbeing".

Following the findings, deputy Catherine Curtis said she was astounded there had been no "targeted inspections of farm workers accommodation".

When asked if the farming sector had taken the welfare of seasonal workers seriously enough, Richardson said "we always have".

He said: "We live on the farms with our staff so that's a factor that isn't thought of too much, but it does make a difference and we do care."

Richardson said the union had put out a survey to "establish the new values" of portable cabins and said measures would be taken based on the results to "bring them up to a decent standard".

The head of the farming union said it was waiting for guidance from the survey results and would then "get to work" on improving and bringing the accommodation "up to standard".

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