Covid-19: Children

Lord Jones Excerpts

Thursday 17th June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Jones (Lab) [V]]

I thank my noble friend Lady Morris, for her debate and acknowledge the conviction and rightness of her remarks, and in the true voice of the great city of Manchester. I served in three Administrations alongside two Morris brothers in another place, a father and an uncle to the noble Baroness, and very fine advocates for the city of Manchester.

The great William Gladstone, the people’s William, on the passage of a franchise Bill was heard to say: “We must now educate our masters”, but left-behind communities remain, despite all the national treasure expended by all Governments since 1945. Unsuccessful schools, bad health, inequality, poverty, Covid—the heartfelt speech of the noble Baroness, Lady Morris, tells us how far we still have to go. A generation ago, the late, wise, noble Lord Dahrendorf, he of the London School of Economics, used the descriptive phrase, “the underclass”. That unwoke phrase is not deployed today, but it carried a chilling truth. My noble friend Lady Morris, in more human terms, has described a large distressed segment of British society.

At the Downing Street lectern, the incoming Premier, Mrs Theresa May, made a compelling speech of sincerity. One of her phrases told of her concern for those “just getting by”, a noble sentiment, and this debate over- whelmingly concerns those young people in the homes of those just getting by. This describes many millions of our fellow citizens, but what of those who are not getting by? We know the answer. Many tens of thousands of our fellow citizens are not getting by.

RA Butler’s Education Act 1944 envisaged secondary technical schools but they did not happen. Tony Crosland, he of The Future of Socialism, and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher pretty well eliminated the grammar schools without improving much else. Our polytechnics, technically oriented, sought university status and arguably took their eye off the skills and apprenticeship world. Female entry into industrial apprenticeships is far from equal—an imbalance to be tackled. I think the key is the teacher and the lecturer if we want children and young adults to make their way. We underrate, underpay and misunderstand the teacher. We need more teachers.

As a class teacher, I realised that if you strain the children, you strain the teachers. The teacher who gives her all throughout lesson times is exhausted when the final bell rings. As a young Minister with an education portfolio, I noted that the LEA’s older, besuited councillor type was keenest on the fortunes of the most able. As an FE lecturer, I taught aerospace apprentices and saw their responses to practical challenges. They thrived on the vocational. The diligent, positive Select Committee chair, Robert Halfon MP, is surely right to call for more vocational curriculums. It is a very positive move for the Times newspaper to set up an education commission, and surely the respected Rachel Sylvester, as chair, will deliver a helpful, decisive compass for action. Tony Blair’s recently delivered speech referred to the many forgotten towns and communities. He made helpful suggestions concerning new universities in the north. There is a way forward.

To conclude, we live in an alarmingly unequal society —indeed, one of rapidly increasing inequality. At a time when most of us live in homes of promise and prosperity, or homes of great prosperity and much possession, it is all so unequal, so very unjust, that it is now a challenge to British statecraft.

Skills and Post-16 Education Bill [HL]

Lord Jones Excerpts

2nd reading
Tuesday 15th June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Jones (Lab) [V]]

I congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Black, on her speech.

Over half a century in Westminster’s Houses, I have seen countless Bills, presented by successive Governments— Bill after Bill—and today we have the noble Baroness’s Bill. Britain is still striving to find the holy grail of skills and it is truly a worthy, welcome and urgent objective. One recollects the embattled Chancellor Denis Healey exhorting Britain’s manufacturing companies to drive down unit costs. Today’s Chancellor, Mr Sunak, urges British industry to raise its productivity—not much change over 45 years as Britain struggles to hold on to her manufacturing base.

The Federal Republic of Germany is a mighty industrial presence in Europe, a formidable competitor, a huge exporter, and renowned for engineering skills. Did not Chancellor Bismarck forge a lasting technical skills template in the 19th century? How can we persuade more school leavers to compete to take up apprenticeships? How can we persuade more young women to enter this crucial field? Female entry is woefully low but a successful apprentice in our blue-chip companies might find that the world is her oyster. In the Times the noble Lord, Lord Baker, revealed that the big engineering, motor and aircraft companies pay their apprentices salaries of £12,000 to £20,000 per year, and some even more.

Does the Minister agree that parents of high-school leavers should be told formally and in a timely fashion about these salaries, prospects and activities? Should not head teachers encourage their students to apply for apprenticeships in the most positive manner, as a priority? Do we envisage in the future school tables for apprenticeships gained? It is far-fetched, perhaps, but how better to spur matters forward for the national future?

Ultimately, so much depends upon the head teacher. Today, young women are storming the rugby pitches, soccer fields, cricket squares and the boxing ring. A far better place might be the aerospace shop floor where excellent apprenticeships lead to salaries of £25,000 per year and much more, consequent upon qualification, bonus and shift work. Overall, the modern shop floor is spotlessly clean, well policed by health and safety and complete with pension and holiday. The current industrial playbook demands high-quality housekeeping in today’s factory environment. Rolls-Royce, Nissan, Tata and Airbus all have close, local links with their adjacent FE colleges.

Take, for instance Airbus—the register refers to my interests—which furnishes a splendid example in north-east Wales, my homeland and one-time constituency. It is a 6,000-strong establishment of world-class skills, a reservoir of unbeatable technical prowess and the equal of any comparable factory in the world. It makes the wings that fly the unsurpassed Airbus fleet. Each year a large cohort of able apprentices enter mainstream production. This company earns many billions in exports for Britain and has outstripped its mighty competitor, Boeing. It is the jewel in the crown of Welsh industry and the foundation of its famed advance is leadership, fine apprenticeships, FE and business collaboration, and skills excellence.

The FE college in this renowned mix is Coleg Cambria, which is near the factory runway. It has British awards and competition wins aplenty. The paramount requirement in post-16 education is always the leadership skill of the principal, the CEO. This establishment had fine leadership from Wil Edmunds OBE and David Jones OBE. These able professionals always liaised with head of plant, the professional acknowledged throughout Europe, Mr Paul McKinlay—a brilliant leader. The business world of north-east Wales is the customer for skills. Skills training fails if the business world is shut out. I am keenly aware that unions make up this global and local success in aerospace.

To conclude, in the helpful Explanatory Notes in annexe A on page 23 on provision, there is reference to

“the competence of the Senedd”.

Will the Minister expand on this? How and when was there consultation on the Bill with Senedd Ministers and officials? There may not be time for the Minister to answer; if so, will she please write on the points I have raised?

Queen’s Speech

Lord Jones Excerpts

Wednesday 12th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Jones (Lab) [V]]

My Lords, I offer my congratulations on the maiden speeches and say farewell to the right reverend Prelate.

Britain needs a clear-eyed, long-term, ruthlessly executed industrial strategy. Surely early 21st-century Britain still needs manufacturing industries. We are certainly post-imperial but not necessarily post-industrial—not yet. So, I say yes to AI, the smartphone, cyber, the computer, the drone and the leading edge. However, my hope is that the Government will promulgate with conviction an industrial strategy that, at its core, proposes to save, sustain, protect, enhance and invest in what remains of our manufacturing. To be fair, no Government can wish away the impact of global influences, but Britain’s future prosperity and her front-line defence require our much-depleted manufacturing to be protected from further shrinkage.

I instance the steel industry. Steel is a foundation industry. Today, it is in a very shaky condition. Surely it should not be on the brink of being eroded away. This national industry should not be the creature of sleight of hand, of chance, of boardroom ambition or of money. A great nation requires a sound steel industry. Shorn of steel, Britain would quickly be of less consequence in the eyes of its international partners and rivals. National defence requires steel. Steel is war. It happens. Today, our magnificent Navy has a nuclear-powered, nuclear-armed fleet of submarines. Without the foundation industry of steel, that mighty deterrent would look increasingly ineffective. In 1970, when I entered the other place, British manufacturing approximated 20% of GDP. Today, it barely makes 10%. The nation that lets its seed-corn industries fail will perish.

Today, Britain’s steel industry survives largely on the south Wales coast, on the north-east coast and in my homeland of Welsh Flintshire. When the smokestacks fell in the late 1970s and early 1980s, redundancies rained down on our busy, prosperous steel communities. For example, male unemployment in some of the Shotton steelworks communities reached 20% or more. Huge sacrifices were made by many thousands of good people. What remains there at Shotton is leading-edge and profitable. Let us remember that, in yesteryear, these steel communities helped us defeat both the Kaiser and the Führer. They deserve the best of outcomes and their industry should be prioritised. Our remaining manufacturing needs more research grants, better-prepared school leavers, more effective world-class skilling and ever more enhanced links with our universities.

To conclude, the citizens of Hartlepool have made a devastating electoral statement. Let us heed it.

Education (Exemption from School and Further Education Institutions Inspections) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2020

Lord Jones Excerpts

Thursday 29th October 2020 Grand Committee

[Lord Jones (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for her introduction, clarity and brevity, and for a helpful Explanatory Memorandum. The inspectorate has been a ubiquitous, necessary and often feared power and presence for many generations. For context, I refer to the great Education Reform Bill—the GERB, as it was called—from the noble Lord, Lord Baker of Dorking. From at least the time it became an Act, the curriculum and the inspectorate have been central.

I declare my interests. As a young person I headed a department, using chalk and blackboard. As a full-time regional official at a teachers union I served in three administrations, with responsibility for schooling and collaborating with the inspectorate, and sanctioning two special schools. I also chaired a diocesan board for schools. I never saw an inspector in my class or in my school.

With hindsight, the inspectorate should have been more robust and more active. It valued its independence. It perceived itself as a favour elite; it was superb, it wrote well and it cared. It had a low profile. Today, in a society of rapid social and economic change, the inspectorate is vital—and there is Covid-19.

I shall instance, again for context, an example of the impact of an inspection. It was of a good primary school in a working-class area. The head teacher was lively and a genuine leader. There were local problems but they were overcome. An inspection was scheduled but it was quite some weeks away. The prospect got on top of the professional staff—it was all they could think of. It was a blight. One experienced and highly regarded female class teacher in her 40s told me tearfully of her apprehension. The prospect terrified her and, without a doubt, psychologically she was broken. It was saddening to behold. In this sort of situation, an inspection can be counterproductive. This person was a valued staff member but so very obviously distressed.

Deploying the inspectorate requires constant revision, and clearly the Minister has that in mind. But I pose the question: who is for the children? It is “time irredeemable”, as the distinguished Lady Plowden once said in her caring report. The inspectorate is for the children; the head teacher is for the children; the conscientious parent, one hopes, is always for the children; and clearly the Minister is. One might therefore argue that the forces are balanced and that the Minister has decided.