Oral Answers to Questions

Wera Hobhouse Excerpts

Monday 1st December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Josh MacAlister]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue, and I will be happy to ask my noble Friend in the other place to meet him. The qualifications that we are defunding are large qualifications that directly overlap with T-levels. The Government’s policy is very clearly to back T-levels as a good choice for students in colleges.

[Wera Hobhouse (Bath) (LD)]

In Bath, our economy depends on highly skilled workers in engineering, the creative industries and the digital sector. Employers tell me time and again that the current apprenticeship system simply does not deliver the pipeline they need. Will the Government be serious about growth by replacing the broken apprenticeship system with a more flexible skills and training levy, as well as guaranteeing apprentices at least the national minimum wage?

[Josh MacAlister]

I thank the hon. Member for this timely question, following the Budget last week, when the Government made the welcome decision to change the apprenticeship system by fully funding apprenticeships for small and medium-sized enterprises, which will open up opportunities for many more. The latest data shows that under this Government, apprenticeship starts, progression and completion are up, up, up.