Govt skills plan 'doesn't fit' recession

Friday, 16 January 2009 12:00 AM

By Laura Miller

Current government skills and learning policy is inappropriate now the country is in the middle of a recession, leading politicians have said.

MPs are concerned that the inflexible and sluggish Train to Gain programme means Britain is not well placed to cope with the 'rapid adjustments' needed to halt rising unemployment.

"Train to Gain has not delivered as the government intended, and it is certainly not fit now in the face of massive unemployment," said Dr Brian Iddon, Labour MP for Bolton South East.

The government announced plans to reform its Train to Gain programme early last year, with an initiative to dissolve the Learning and Skills Council and hand its responsibility for youth training to local authorities.

Adult training programmes would then be handed to a new agency called the Skills Funding Agency.

Negative comments about the need for change come as the Innovation, Universities and Skills (IUSS) Committee released a report which is highly critical of the present system.

'The system must be simplified and the government should quickly provide clarity on the roles of the different organisations and ensure the system can be understood by its users, not only by 'a few civil servants and a handful of academics,' urges the report.

Its authors argue the abolition of the Learning and Skills Council and the creation of a new Skills Funding Agency for post-19 training could add to existing confusion about training and skills provision.

When the white paper on training was published, innovation, universities and skills secretary John Denham supported the plans.

"We want every adult to have the opportunity to improve their skills to get a job or progress in work and to help them realise their own aspirations and talents," he said.

"The proposals in today's consultation paper will help us to build on the great success of the Learning and Skills Council who are currently taking forward the skills agenda."

During a press conference on Tuesday, Mr Willis was unable to say if the government could learn any lessons from other countries.

"Germany and Holland take a different approach to skills training, but they are still seeing an economic downturn and they still need radical change," he said.

"Emerging economies are building their skills frameworks from the bottom up. There's no magic bullet. We must develop a system nationally dependent on our needs."

Thousands of British workers have loss their jobs since the start of the year.

Today Honda was the latest firm to announce problems due to the downturn. All 4,800 staff at its Swindon plant will be sent home on full pay during February and March, as the company halts production due to plummeting demand for new cars.

Serious about politics?

Dedicate one year of your life to getting to the heart of current issues in global politics. Our courses allow you to specialise in development and policy-making, international relations, and political journalism and communications.

Tags:
• education
,
• higher education