Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [Lords]

Gurinder Singh Josan Excerpts

2nd reading
Tuesday 25th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Gurinder Singh Josan (Smethwick) (Lab)]

I am pleased to speak on Second Reading of this Bill, which I welcome for its focus on overhauling the skills system in England, particularly in relation to apprenticeships and technical education.

The creation of the Institute for Apprenticeships in 2017, with the subsequent addition of oversight for technical education, undoubtedly helped to create a system that increasingly includes higher-quality apprenticeships and increases the accessibility of these pathways to all. However, there are still too many in our country for whom unlocking their full potential remains a distant dream, which is fundamental to everything this Government have set out to achieve and to the future of our country.

The missions driving this Government—the incredible plan for change, the drive to become self-sufficient as a nation on energy, defence and security, the need to increase growth in our economy, and the drive to improve the lives of all our citizens—all require a comprehensive plan for improving skills. The basic provisions of the Bill will abolish the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education and transfer its functions ultimately to Skills England; there are also proposed changes to the functions undertaken by Skills England. I believe these changes are important and will help to ensure a more simplified system with built-in flexibility, which will enable the skills system to take account of changing circumstances.

Conservative Members have spoken about the powers being taken up by the Secretary of State and the Department. I think building in accountability is important, so that we know that this Parliament can come back to Ministers and hold them to account on that. All this, I think, will help to ensure that our skills system is truly responsive to the needs of users, employers and our economy.

This matter is incredibly important to my constituents. Smethwick has a rich industrial heritage, and, while there have been significant changes over the years, the need for high-quality skills, education and training remains key. In Smethwick, significantly more people than the national average have no qualifications, significantly fewer have a level 4 qualification, and fewer than the national average take part in apprenticeships. Too often, structural inconsistencies hold back our businesses and our people from flourishing. The lack of skills essential for work, the lack of specific skills required by employers in the place they are needed and the lack of options available to many for achieving these skills are just some of those issues. The Bill will help to streamline the skills system and ensure it is able to identify gaps, respond to changing circumstances and provide the skills needed for our businesses to flourish.

Last week, I met Robert Powell, the head of resource development at Keltruck Limited, which is the largest independently owned Scania distributor globally involved in the sale of new and used trucks, and is based in my constituency. Keltruck is a significant business, with 461 employees, including 51 apprentices—that is more than 10% of its employees. I was also informed that pretty much all the senior staff in the organisation have come up through the apprenticeship route—this is a business that really values apprenticeships. Many of its apprentices go on to great jobs in industry, for example, one went on to become chief mechanic at a top Formula 1 racing team. That is something to aspire to, and a story for somebody from Smethwick that is quite inspirational.

Being more responsive means listening to businesses. While Keltruck welcomes the recent announcement that English and maths qualifications will not be a requirement for apprenticeships, it is concerned that this requirement still applies to 16 to 18-year-olds beginning an apprenticeship. The story that was told to me was that some of their senior staff would not be in that position if they were required to have an English or maths qualification at age 16 or 18. I hope the Government can therefore look at that too to ensure that all our young people have access to the best quality apprenticeships.

In an illustration of the flexibility and freedom that can be brought to bear, I congratulate Richard Parker, the Mayor of the West Midlands, and the West Midlands combined authority on launching a scheme last year to enable bigger businesses with an unspent apprenticeship levy to donate that to the West Midlands combined authority rather than returning it to His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. That has allowed the West Midlands combined authority to receive nearly £3 million to support 176 small and medium-sized enterprises and 411 apprentices through fully funded apprenticeships. That is an indication of how the freedoms brought about by the Bill could be utilised.

The two examples I have outlined show what can be achieved through a skills system that is more flexible and responsive, as well as being focused on excellence. That is incredibly important to my constituency and I therefore have no hesitation in supporting the Bill.