Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Stephen Mosley

Monday 16th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

Yes, I do. There is a huge array of organisations. Only this morning, I was launching Careers Lab with Steve Holliday, who runs National Grid. That is another organisation, like the one my hon. Friend mentioned, that can help to broker links between employers and education, which are so important after the systems were separated for far too long.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

Following on from that, one way to enthuse young people in engineering is to give them first-hand experience and use role models. What is the Minister doing specifically to encourage engineering companies to go into schools and enthuse young people?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Stephen Mosley

Monday 6th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

13. What assessment he has made of the benefits and disadvantages of the use of tablet devices in schools.

[The Minister for Skills and Enterprise (Matthew Hancock)]

Technology, well used, can be a powerful tool to help teachers drive up standards, and evidence shows that the use of technology can have the biggest impact on those most disengaged from learning.

[Stephen Mosley]

Technology such as tablets can be very beneficial in the classroom, but it can also put huge strain on parental finances. What support can the Government offer to make sure that all children, irrespective of their family circumstances, have access to the technology that they need in the classroom?

[Matthew Hancock]

My hon. Friend makes a very important point. In fact, during the past year the number of tablets in secondary schools has gone up by 50%, and the number in primary schools has more than doubled, while we also have a special capital fund for colleges to fund such IT. However, this is about more than physical resources; it is about changing the way teaching is done to make the best use of this tool to drive up standards.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Stephen Mosley

Thursday 5th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

Late payment is indeed a cultural and leadership issue. I held a meeting in the Department last week with all those concerned. As the hon. Lady well knows, we will be publishing a consultation paper very shortly. I commend her for her continued action and pressing on this issue.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

Small business in Chester is really getting behind small business Saturday this weekend. I have delivered more than 400 packs to businesses telling them what it is all about. Will the Minister commit to making an assessment of the success of the first small business Saturday, so that we can improve and help small business in future?

[Matthew Hancock]

I am sure that we can make a commitment right now to assess the success of small business Saturday, which will be celebrated across this House and across the country. This is the first one this year—it has been going on for some years in the United States—and I hope that it grows and grows.

Start-up Loans

Debate between Matt Hancock and Stephen Mosley

Wednesday 20th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for adding to the statistics at my disposal. He is a doughty campaigner for enterprise in the education system. One of the main purposes of bringing together the skills and enterprise briefs is to ensure that the education system reflects and prepares people for the world of employment and enterprise. That is very close to my heart and I look forward to working with him to make it happen more.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

The start-up loans scheme has been a fantastic success story. One reason for that success is the presence of business mentors. Will the Minister reassure the House that as the scheme grows, as new groups get involved and as the age cap is lifted, the number of business mentors will keep up in order to ensure that all the businesses have access to the support that they need?

[Matthew Hancock]

We are finding that lots of business men and women are interested in mentoring, partly because they feel that they got so much out of growing their business and want to give something back. Engaging more mentors is a vital part of the scheme, but that is not a constraint on expansion owing to the enthusiasm—to which I pay tribute—of business men and women who want to help others to get the sort of start that they had.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Stephen Mosley

Monday 11th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

1. What estimate he has made of savings to the public purse arising from the abolition of the education maintenance allowance.

[The Minister for Skills and Enterprise (Matthew Hancock)]

By replacing the education maintenance allowance with the 16-to-19 bursary fund, we are saving £380 million every year and targeting help more sharply at the young people who need it most.

[Stephen Mosley]

My local further education provider, West Cheshire college, is proving very effective at ensuring that the bursary fund helps those young people who most need it. What is my hon. Friend the Minister doing to ensure that the bursary fund is targeted at those most in need?

[Matthew Hancock]

My hon. Friend’s local FE college is not only very good; it is also the FE college I went to. I am glad to say that the 16-to-19 bursary fund allows colleges to target support at those who need it most. The most vulnerable receive a bursary of up to £1,200, which is far more than they could have received from EMA.

Apprenticeships

Debate between Matt Hancock and Stephen Mosley

Thursday 14th March 2013 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

Yes. The quality of apprenticeships is vital, and that includes the length of an apprenticeship. We have introduced a minimum duration for apprenticeships, and we insist that, in all but exceptional cases, they should last for the minimum of a year. That is in the report, but it is an area in which we have already taken action.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

Apprenticeships have been one of the Government’s big success stories so far. In Chester, the number of apprenticeships has more than doubled, with 900 people starting one last year. When I talk to companies and businesses, however, I find that micro-businesses find it difficult to take on apprentices. Does the Minister have a view on how we can encourage companies with only one or two employees to take on an apprentice?

[Matthew Hancock]

We are making it as simple as possible. I studied at West Cheshire college in my hon. Friend’s constituency. Colleges and other providers can help small businesses to bust some of the bureaucracy, but I want to bust some of the bureaucracy myself to make it easier.