When Sher Real Murray, a member of the South East Cornelius Parliament, visited a thriving local business, he first saw how he played gardening in support of green growth and climate change in the UK.
The MP visited the Kernok Park Plant at its headquarters outside Saltash, Corwell.
Kernok Park, an independent cornice plant that has been in business for more than 40 years, produces more than 13 million plants annually in the UK, Ireland and Europe, and operates on seven acres[7 ha]in Pilate.
It is part of a strong cornice horticulture industry that grows a variety of plants and trees. Cornell, a leading British producer of cereals such as daffodils.
Bruce Harnett, managing director of the company, said: “Gardening has never been very popular and there is a real opportunity to grow our business, but we want the government to reduce red tape and bureaucracy on imports and exports.
Currently, the process is severely hampered by the paperwork and government-sponsored costs of growing our business.
For small to medium-sized importers, all certification, proxy costs and inspection costs on both sides increased by about 400% compared to 2020. We estimate that importing and exporting will cost us more than ,000 200,000 a year, due to increased export costs and more time associated with the complex management of importing and selling plants outside the UK.
“As far as the workforce is concerned, we are working hard to help meet our needs in the future, but in an unexpectedly unpredictable market, more planning and forecasting is needed. We need government recognition and policy change that best reflects our needs for seasonal workers by incorporating ornamental plants into the current agricultural labor program.
“I was impressed by their great work in growing such beautiful plants,” said Real Murray. This first hand list is especially important for my role in the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee.