Curry house crisis hots up Brexit debate

Mixing spices in a searing hot pan, cooking naan in the tandoor oven and juggling takeaway orders, restaurant owner Saiful Alam is short-staffed and stressed -- a situation he hopes Brexit will improve.
Like many of those running Britain's 12,000 curry houses, the Bangladeshi chef is struggling to find suitable staff as new immigration rules have made it harder to hire people from Bangladesh and India.
The issue has taken on political heat ahead of the June 23 referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union, after the Vote Leave campaign claimed that the problem was the fault of uncontrolled EU migration pushing up numbers of arrivals.

It said that a so-called Brexit would herald a "fairer" immigration system that treats EU and non-EU workers, particularly from former colonies in the Commonwealth with family ties to Britain, equally.
The argument resonates with Alam as he puts together dishes on his own in the kitchen of the Prince of Bengal, a modest restaurant in Watford, north of London, after his new Romanian cook failed to turn up for work.
Alam has some British staff and eastern European employees, but complains to AFP about "the language barrier and the experience -- they're not familiar with the food, the cooking, the spices".

The Bangladesh Caterers Association, an industry body, claims four to five curry houses a week are closing in Britain because of a shortage of staff.
Vote Leave campaigner Priti Patel, a government minister, last month launched a "Save Our Curry Houses" campaign, blaming EU migration for the industry crisis.