Technical and Vocational Education

Debate between Matt Hancock and John Denham

Wednesday 9th July 2014 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

I will have to add that to my list of erroneous facts from the Labour party that need sorting out.

[Mr John Denham (Southampton, Itchen) (Lab)]

Does not a more measured view of the history tell us the following: in 1997, fewer than 20,000 people completed apprenticeships, but by the time the previous Labour Government had finished, 285,000 people were starting apprenticeships each year? That number has continued to grow, but there are legitimate concerns about an increasing number of late starts and a smaller proportion of youthful starts, and those are the issues we need to address.

[Matthew Hancock]

That intervention was rather better than the whole speech given by the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central. It is absolutely true that modern apprenticeships were started by the great Lord Hunt of Wirral in 1994 and they grew. Under this Government, they have doubled in number and the latest figures show an increase in the proportion of apprentices who are under 25, which I welcome. More apprenticeships are good news, but we have to make sure that they are also of a high quality.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and John Denham

Thursday 26th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

I pay tribute to the hon. Lady for the work that she has done on this subject. We consulted on all the potential options, including statutory maximums for payment terms. We put the consultation out with an open mind and a wide range of options. In fact, the small business groups that came forward with proposals in response to the consultation favoured transparency, not a statutory limit. We followed the evidence and the response to the consultation. Like her, I am determined to do everything we can to tackle this problem while not getting in the way of freedom of contract between businesses. We have taken these measures because of what the evidence demonstrated, and I think they will have a big impact. That is all part of our long-term economic plan.

[Mr John Denham (Southampton, Itchen) (Lab)]

T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

Higher Education Fees

Debate between Matt Hancock and John Denham

Thursday 9th December 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Denham]

The hon. Gentleman has clearly not been listening. I have been talking about the changes that were open to his party to make.

It is because the average graduates going into typical jobs will get hit hardest compared with the highest-earning graduates, that we will need a fairer system of graduate contribution in the years to come.

[Matthew Hancock (West Suffolk) (Con)]

The right hon. Gentleman will not accept comparisons between the existing scheme and the Government’s proposals, but will he accept the analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies showing that the proposed system is more progressive than both the current scheme and the measures put forward in the Browne review?

[Mr Denham]

No, the IFS said graduates from the poorest 30% of households will pay more, and clearly at all other levels people will pay more than under the current scheme.