Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jim Cunningham and Anne Milton

Monday 24th June 2019 Commons Chamber

[Anne Milton]

I thank my hon. Friend for having already raised this issue with me. I hope she has managed to speak to the Further Education Commissioner. Students will be at the heart of all our plans, but we are keen to find a solution as soon as we can.

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

T5. Some weeks ago, thousands of children marched across the country voicing concerns about climate change. What is the Secretary of State doing to equip teachers to teach the subject so that students are well equipped?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jim Cunningham and Anne Milton

Monday 4th February 2019 Commons Chamber

[Anne Milton]

I notice the hon. Gentleman pointing his finger across the Dispatch Box. The Secretary of State is very aware—because I have not ceased to point it out to him—of the challenges that FE colleges face, and I did hear the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Toby Perkins) raise this in Prime Minister’s questions last week. It is good to hear people across the House talking about further education, because sadly the House collectively, including under the last Labour Government, did not talk about it very much.

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

2. What recent progress his Department has made on the introduction of T-levels.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jim Cunningham and Anne Milton

Monday 12th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Anne Milton]

Yes, I can. The right hon. Gentleman perhaps ought to know that I have continued contact with my fellow Ministers in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, because this issue is important. We are not being rigid. There are ways around this, and I had a recent meeting to discuss exactly this point. It is important for the industry to get together and talk to the Institute for Apprenticeships, because there are ways around this.

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

How can we improve the quality of apprenticeships when further education—or certainly Coventry College—has had a 30% cut? What is the Minister going to do about it?

[Anne Milton]

By 2020, there will be £2.5 billion available for apprenticeships. In fact, a lot of apprenticeship training is done by independent training providers, so I urge all further education colleges to make sure they get involved and take up the opportunity that the levy money makes available.

Education

Debate between Jim Cunningham and Anne Milton

Monday 15th January 2018 Ministerial Corrections

[Anne Milton]

Yes. We are doing a huge amount of work; I know that my hon. Friend, as chairman of the all-party group on apprenticeships, is doing a lot of work himself. We have specific targets: we want the proportion of people with learning disabilities starting apprenticeships to increase by 20% by 2020. We have made progress, and the trajectory for people with learning disabilities is going up.

Topical Questions

The following is an extract from an answer given by the Minister for Apprenticeships and Skills to the hon. Member for Coventry South (Mr Cunningham) during Topical Questions to Education Ministers on 11 December 2017:

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

What is the Minister doing to help young people with hearing difficulties to obtain apprenticeships?

[Anne Milton]

A lot of work and a lot of money is going into making sure that young people with learning difficulties can access apprenticeships. That is why we have set targets so that 20% of all apprenticeship starts will be people with learning difficulties by 2020. [Official Report, 11 December 2017, Vol. 633, c. 23.]

Letter of correction from Anne Milton:

An error has been identified in the Oral Answer given to the hon. Member for Coventry South (Mr Cunningham).

The correct response should have been:

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jim Cunningham and Anne Milton

Monday 11th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

What is the Minister doing to help young people with hearing difficulties to obtain apprenticeships?

[Anne Milton]

A lot of work and a lot of money is going into making sure that young people with learning difficulties can access apprenticeships. That is why we have set targets so that 20% of all apprenticeship starts will be people with learning difficulties by 2020.[Official Report, 15 January 2018, Vol. 634, c. 4MC.]

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jim Cunningham and Anne Milton

Tuesday 12th June 2012 Commons Chamber

[Anne Milton]

I can assure the hon. Lady that we will be talking with the devolved Administrations, and indeed all other agencies, and welcome any input on this. It is good to hear her welcome our strategy, and I am sure she will agree that the only way we can reduce alcohol harm is by working across Government.

[Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)]

5. What recent progress he has made on the evaluation of the thalidomide grant pilot scheme.