Apprenticeships (Alternative English Completion Conditions) Regulations 2012

Baroness Wilcox Excerpts

Wednesday 25th April 2012 Grand Committee

Moved By

[Baroness Wilcox]

That the Grand Committee do report to the House that it has considered the Apprenticeships (Alternative English Completion Conditions) Regulations 2012.

Relevant document: 42nd Report from the Joint Committee of Statutory Instruments.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox)]

My Lords, apprenticeships are synonymous with employment. It is the experience of genuine employment that sets an apprenticeship apart from most other forms of vocational training. It is the fact that apprentices have a unique opportunity to learn from one or more mentors and to develop, practise and hone real occupational skills which gives them a real head start in their careers. We all, I am sure, can envisage an apprentice working alongside the mentor or master, watching, copying and refining their skills. For his part, the master will demonstrate, guide and correct the apprentice’s work. Both apprentice and employer have a real stake in the apprentice’s development and success.

When this Administration came into office, approximately 21 per cent of 16 to 18 year-old apprentices were on a programme-led apprenticeship. This meant that one-fifth of our younger apprentices were not employed and did not get paid. Following the initiative of the previous Government to introduce statutory apprenticeships, we went ahead with that work and last year we stopped funding programme-led apprenticeships. The introduction of the apprenticeship agreement regulations in April of this year will end the few remaining programme-led apprenticeships. This means that we can be increasingly confident that apprentices following our statutory programme will be employed and remunerated.

However, this House agreed to make provision for limited exceptions to the requirement for apprentices to be employed. That is why we are here today—to agree those circumstances as specified in these regulations. This issue was thoroughly debated during the passage of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act. The proposed exceptions fall into three categories, the first being where employed status is not the norm. This applies in a very small number of jobs or occupational areas. Apprentices in this category covered by the regulations will be engaged in specified occupations following a specified framework. A characteristic of such apprenticeships is that they will be supported by experienced colleagues involved in a collective venture— for example, share fishermen.

Secondly, there are those employed apprentices who are made redundant during the course of the apprenticeship. In such a difficult economic climate it would be unfair further to penalise people who have lost the opportunity to complete their apprenticeship through no fault of their own. Knowing that they can complete their apprenticeship, even if they are not able to find alternative paid employment, will, I am sure, offer some consolation. The regulations provide that they may complete their apprenticeship within six months of the date of their redundancy by working other than for reward—for example, by working in a voluntary or unpaid capacity. Having completed their apprenticeship, they should be better placed in the labour market.

Thirdly, we have considered the unique position of our elite athletes. Apprentices undertaking the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence with a view to competing in the Olympic, Paralympic or Commonwealth Games are covered by this final category. In the year of the London Olympics, we are reminded of how important it is to support young athletes to develop their skills. We have sought to ensure clarity over which sports and games are included in these regulations. They must be listed as an official sport from one of the Games mentioned and they must not be from a sport in which we would expect an apprentice to be employed. Such business sports include cricket and football. Apprentices in business sports will still be able to access apprenticeships using the standard conditions.

I hope that noble Lords will agree that these regulations balance the Government’s desire for apprentices to be employed with the need to allow for some flexibility in those circumstances where employment is not possible. That is what this House expects and it helps to enhance the quality of the learning experience by allowing apprentices to apply their blossoming skills as they work. This is also consistent with recent announcements introducing a minimum duration of 12 months for apprenticeships undertaken by 16 to 18 year-olds, and for adults unless they have prior relevant qualifications. I commend the regulations to the Committee.

[Baroness Byford]

My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for explaining the reasoning behind the regulations. I reinforce again my commitment to apprenticeships, which are hugely important across whatever aspect of work people are able to secure. Apprenticeships are a wonderful way of learning. As the Minister rightly said, mentoring and the passing on of skills and knowledge are crucial in all this.

I apologise for not taking part in the Bill to which the Minister referred. Looking at Schedule 1, I was intrigued to see the fishing industry, which relates to the Minister’s background, listed. I rise to speak to ask for a little more clarification on that. One of the things that struck me was that the fishing industry, which the Minister knows so well, sometimes has restrictions on the days when it can sail. Therefore, I wondered whether there was enough flexibility for the apprentice to be able to complete their six months within six months or whether, under those circumstances—maybe because the ship cannot go out to sea—they could take a longer period. I am not being critical; it is because of my own ignorance that I am raising this particular issue.

Another question arises: if, for any reason, the person is made redundant for obviously commercial reasons, is that apprentice then able to transfer to another fisherman, for example, and reallocate the time that they have done already, or do they have to start afresh? I may have missed this when I was looking through the papers on this order, but I am not clear and I seek clarification.

I agree with the Minister that this is a unique opportunity. It is a shame that, over many years, apprenticeships have been perhaps underrated and undervalued. I am glad that the Government have taken up the role and are much more committed to encouraging and promoting apprenticeships. However, I seek clarification from the Minister.

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Wilcox]

My Lords, I thank everyone for taking part and asking some interesting and important questions. It is not necessarily the number of people who are in the Room but the questions that they ask, as I have discovered before in the Moses Room. I am always very careful when I see that there not many people here. It is usually the ones who really know what they are talking about who are.

I thank my noble friend Lady Byford for her question and for noting that I come from the fishing industry and am therefore interested. In opposition she led on Defra, so she knows the subject very well. Only sea fishing is covered by the maritime occupations in these regulations, namely share fisherfolk, crew and deck hands. The numbers are small. There were 30 apprenticeships in 2010-11. There has been no demand to develop other types of fishing apprenticeship. Officials will explore the potential to develop this sector further with the National Apprenticeship Service and the sector skills councils.

When I was in the industry I first knew about share fishing when my grandmother left me my little fleet of fishing boats. The captains of the boats said to me, “We’ll be share fishing, then”. I said, “Oh, right”. That meant that I got half of whatever catch came up to pay for the boat, the oil and everything else that was needed, while the other half went to them. It did not work terribly well so I think that what share fishing means has changed nowadays, but that is how it was explained.

It is sad that there is very little demand for apprenticeships in fishing now. I am delighted to see that the National Apprenticeship Service will explore this, particularly since I am involved with the National Lobster Hatchery in Cornwall. There are other ways of being in the fishing industry, along the lines of research into what we used to call fish farming but is now carried out wild at sea. Certainly, in the lobster hatchery it is being done as a scientific project. That area has moved to what look like scientific apprenticeships but are about the fishing industry, which may explain why we do not have more figures than that. I will look into that for my own information and see if we can find a better answer in the future.

My noble friend Lady Byford then talked about the fishing transfer. As she suggested, a fishing apprenticeship would take place over a longer period, as required to complete the training. Six months applies only to redundancy. Those made redundant can transfer their apprenticeship to another employer. However, although a fishing apprenticeship is about going to sea and fishing, in my experience apprentices also spend time on the quay, learning how to look after their nets, selling their catch and learning how to grade their catch. It is not just about days at sea and seamanship but their workmanship with the fish that they catch and the things that they have to use. I hope that that is helpful; it certainly gave me the opportunity to get an answer as well.

The noble Baroness, Lady Sharp, asked about the numbers affected by redundancy. I am told that we do not collect data on this. Surveys tell us that less than 5 per cent of the total number of apprenticeship starts finish in that way. However, we are considering what measures to put in place to collect these data. I thank the noble Baroness for that question.

I come now to the noble Lord, Lord Young. I have a note here from an expert whom I know the noble Lord recalls from his days as a Minister, which says, “A written and, I expect, flamboyant response from John Hayes will follow. However, I will attempt to address some of your questions now”.

As to the “Panorama” programme, my honourable friend the Minister for Apprenticeships has commissioned a detailed investigation into the cases identified by “Panorama” and the National Apprenticeship Service will report in the coming weeks on its findings. We are committed to rooting out and eradicating poor quality wherever it is identified, continuing the work that the noble Lord, Lord Young, and his people did before.

As to the monitoring and review of these regulations, the National Apprenticeship Service works in partnership with sector skills councils and other sector bodies and keeps the need for exemptions under review. The regulations will be formally reviewed every 12 months.

We considered the World Championships with DCMS, but the thinking at the moment is that to include not formally recognised sports would be too open-ended. On balance, we have decided to restrict it to only Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth sports. I am sure that if the noble Lord, Lord Young, were to pursue this matter we would no doubt look at it again, if provoked.

[Lord Young of Norwood Green]

All I was trying to point out is that this year is a good example because the World Championships were definitely a preparatory stage for the Olympics. Indeed, selection for the Olympics often depended on a person’s performance in the World Championships.

All I am making a plea for—I am not expecting this to be a negotiating session and for the Minister to say, “Yes, that is perfectly okay”, because I understand that there will be cost implications—is that it should be recognised that the Olympics come every four years, people prepare for them and that ought to be taken into account. For these sporting excellence apprenticeships, it depends how the phrase about working towards competing in the Olympics is interpreted. Perhaps the Minister will take that aspect away.

It is nice to see a wise adviser, who I remember from my days, still actively assisting the Minister.

[Baroness Wilcox]

I am sure that he has noted that.

I thank everyone for the time they have given and the contributions they have made. If I have missed anything, obviously they will have picked it up and we will take it back. There is clearly consensus on the underlying principle that apprentices must be employed. These regulations do not undermine that principle but, rather, they acknowledge that there are only a limited number of circumstances where we will accept that apprentices are not employed in order to complete their apprenticeships. Setting out those circumstances clearly in these regulations can serve only to ensure that the vast majority of apprentices will benefit from employed status and will help stamp out the ambiguity that has been a feature of the programme in the past. I commend the regulations to the Committee.

Motion agreed.