A DAIRY farmer prosecuted for having unlicensed foreign workers says he is unable to find British employees for the job.

Brian Barnett wound up in court last week and admitted employing two Filipino workers through an unlicensed overseas labour agency.

But the owner of Astrop Farm in Brize Norton told the Oxford Mail last night there was a dearth of UK workers who wanted to do the job.

He said: “We could not find people from this country with the qualifications needed to look after the animals. We just could not get the level of staff we needed.

“I think it is partly because of a lack of interest in the industry and, partly the fault of the dairy industry. We haven’t been training the right people or encouraging people to do the job.”

Mr Barnett’s workers were given a package worth £30,000 each, also given a place to stay and use of a car for their 50-hour week’s work.

Mr Barnett was given a conditional discharge by Swindon magistrates in a test case for 18 other farmers.

The court heard the farmer called on the help of the employment agency – which cannot be named because of other ongoing court cases – after struggling for six months to find qualified workers.

The prosecution followed an investigation by the Gangmasters Licensing Authority, set up after the Morecambe Bay disaster in 2004, where 21 Chinese cockle-pickers drowned.

The court heard the two farm workers went to work for Mr Barnett in 2007. One was a qualified vet and the other had a degree in agricultural business management.

Both were experienced dairy herdsmen who had signed up to the agency in the Philippines.

Claims Mr Barnett had exploited the the workers – are are now licensed and still work for him – was rejected by magistrates.

But District Judge Simon Cooper was told he failed to make sure the agency he used was properly licensed.

Last night Mr Barnett said few people realised how much legislation was in place to prevent migrant workers being exploited.

He added: “This has been a hugely worrying time.

“I want to get the message out to other farmers. The law is so complicated that unless you are an expert you just do not know where you stand. Even some of the experts do not know.”

There are 7,899 people claiming unemployment benefit in Oxfordshire.

The National Farmers’ Union agreed there was a lack of British workers interested in the industry.