Chamber chief calls for clarity on future of Cumbria's migrant workers

Rob Johnston has pointed out the area's ageing population and the need to make sure there are enough people in the workforce to plug gaps left by retired people.

He was also keen to make clear that this was an issue across every sector of the workforce.

His comments came after the publication of last week's unemployment statistics, which showed a decrease in the number of jobless people in each of Cumbria's districts.

He said: "If you look at the demographics in Cumbria you realise that our working age population is ageing and it is a significant shift in the working age population.

"We are looking at the same time to get economic growth and for it to comprise of a number of different work skills. These are skills we do not believe we can fill ourselves."

He pointed out that there was a need for workers from outside of the UK to help plug any skills gaps and that there will be problems just recruiting from within the UK.

"We will be fishing in the same pond [as other areas] for the same people."

European workers are prominent in many unskilled jobs in Cumbria, particularly in the Lake District. Mr Johnston said though that this was far from the full picture.

"We have got European doctors working in our hospitals," he said.

"A lot of the scientists and engineers in Cumbria are from Europe."

The chamber has worked on a skills plan with Cumbria's Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) but Mr Johnston said this was done before the vote to leave the EU in June.

"I do not think there was any expectation about Brexit, it was not something we were concerned about," he said.

"We need stability in what we have got, particularly if we are going to get continuing investment. We will only get that [investment] if we have the skills and resources to we need to build our products."

"Through the British Chambers of Commerce we are working hard to make sure Government is aware of these issues."