Oral Answers to Questions

Henry Smith Excerpts

Monday 6th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Walker]

As the hon. Member will recognise, the Government allocate billions of pounds every year in capital funding through local authorities, and work alongside them in this respect. We will continue to work with Sefton Council to ensure that the right funding and the right response to the report are produced. However, I am sure the hon. Member will welcome the fact that schools in his constituency are being supported by both the outgoing priority school building programme and the new rebuilding programme, and that is something that we want to continue.

[Henry Smith (Crawley) (Con)]

9. What measures his Department is taking to strengthen the value of technical qualifications.

[Mrs Flick Drummond (Meon Valley) (Con)]

23. What steps his Department is taking to strengthen the value of technical qualifications.

[Henry Smith]

From next September, Crawley College in my constituency will be offering an expanded number of T-levels, including in healthcare, science, education and construction. Would my hon. Friend like to pay a visit to that institution to see those opportunities for local 16 to 19-year-olds?

[Alex Burghart]

Any invitation to Crawley is too good to miss, and I would be absolutely delighted to come and see the roll-out of T-levels in my hon. Friend’s constituency. In my time as a Minister, I have had the pleasure of seeing many such colleges, and students and tutors are united in their enthusiasm for the project on which they have embarked.