Opposition day: Seasonal work

Parliament voted on 10 December 2025 on an opposition day motion on seasonal work, brought forward by opposition MPs. The motion was defeated by 325 votes to 98. Opposition day motions give parties outside government the chance to set the day's parliamentary agenda; such motions do not change the law but register the views of the House. A related division on the same day saw the government's own amendment to the motion pass by 320 votes to 98, suggesting the government substituted its own text rather than simply opposing the debate. The vote matters because it reflects a live dispute over policy on seasonal agricultural labour. The aye position was associated with support for a more stable visa scheme for seasonal workers and stronger protections for those in agriculture and related sectors. The Labour government, by voting against the opposition's motion and substituting its own, defended its existing approach to seasonal worker policy and agricultural labour supply. The outcome does not directly alter legislation but signals where parliamentary opinion sits and places pressure on ministers to explain their position. The party divide was sharp. All 313 Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted went through the no lobby. The Conservatives provided 91 of the 98 aye votes, with two Reform UK members, one Restore Britain MP, and one Democratic Unionist Party MP also voting aye. Five independents voted aye and five voted no. The Greens voted no, alongside the government. The vote sits alongside a series of similar opposition day defeats, including motions on youth unemployment and rural communities in early 2026, and coincides with the passage of the Employment Rights Bill through Parliament, which has itself generated several closely contested divisions on related labour market questions.