Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on the Growth and Skills Levy.

The department’s levy-funded growth and skills offer, with apprenticeships at the heart, will deliver greater flexibility for learners and employers in England, aligned with our industrial strategy creating routes into good, skilled jobs in growing industries. As a first step, this will include shorter duration and foundation apprenticeships in targeted sectors.

Three trailblazers in the key priority sectors of green energy, healthcare and film/TV production will be among the first to pioneer, and benefit from, the flexibilities that new shorter duration apprenticeships offer. These will support more people to gain high-quality skills at work, fuelling innovation in businesses across the country.

The department is working across government on these plans including working closely with the Department for Business and Trade; and in December, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade hosted a joint CEO Broadcast with businesses to discuss the levy-funded growth and skills offer.