Oral Answers to Questions

Sarah Newton Excerpts

Thursday 6th September 2012 Commons Chamber

[Michael Fallon]

I certainly look forward to appearing in front of the hon. Gentleman’s Select Committee.

I am happy to look at any specific examples of delay that the hon. Gentleman can produce. I want in round 3 to accelerate the process—in particular, to shorten the gap between announcement and conditional offer and between conditional offer and completion of due diligence. He will understand that it is necessary, when public money is involved, for those due diligence checks to be carried out. However, I will look at what he has said and we will do everything we can to accelerate the approval process.

[Sarah Newton (Truro and Falmouth) (Con)]

11. What steps he is taking to protect and promote access to community learning.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (Matthew Hancock)]

This Government are committed to community learning. We have protected the budget, and I want to see funding increasingly targeted at the most disadvantaged people. Community learning trust pilots across England are testing new ways of better involving local communities in how that money is delivered.

[Sarah Newton]

I thank the Minister for that response. Does he agree that it is vitally important that there are opportunities to learn throughout life, and that having protected the community learning budget, it should be focused on those with ambitions to gain new skills throughout their life but not a great deal in the way of formal qualifications?

[Matthew Hancock]

I do agree. I have already heard of the work that my hon. Friend has been doing in supporting Truro and Penwith college and Cornwall college. Improving our nation’s skills is vital for our economic prospects, but learning has intrinsic value in its own right. Henry Ford said:

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning stays young”,

so I hope that I have discovered the secret of eternal youth.