Contributions
1,336 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)I want hon. Members to imagine a hypothetical scenario in which there is a future Government unrelated to this one. Let us say that that hypothetical future Government have passed…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)So far in the debate on clause 7, we have not heard any examples of the requirement for an independent assessment causing a long delay. I thought the Minister would give us an…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)I beg to move amendment 7, in clause 9, page 4, line 13, at end insert— “(c) the impact of the exercise of the relevant functions on the provision of level 7 apprenticeships in…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)It seems like a strange argument, in response to a clause that requires the production of more evidence, to say, “It is all fine because Skills England will be so evidence-led.”…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)This is an extremely sensible amendment, which we welcome. Although I am not a liberal, one of the great strengths of the liberal tradition is its knee-jerk suspicion of…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)I have a specific question. Skills England does not bring the whole skills sector together. There are other excellent bodies, for example, the Migration Advisory Committee, which…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)This is one of the strangest bits of the Bill. It is pretty baffling why the Government do not want to regularly review the approval of technical educational qualifications.…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)Clause 9 has been included because of the level of disquiet about the Bill in the House of Lords. There was literally not even a mention of Skills England in the Bill when it was…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Christopher. The Opposition have three main concerns about the Bill, which are all relevant to this group. First, there were…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)I saw that, and I wonder whether the hon. Lady noted in that submission the organisation’s pretty strong criticisms of the Government’s decision to cut adult skills spending. That…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)That is a perfectly good question. Of course, this Government are a big fan of quangos and have, I think, created—net—28 more quangos since it came to office. Some can be the…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)Even before we set up the levy, I always heard employers expressing concerns about the idea of a levy of any kind. In many instances, they would prefer just to keep their money…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)As I said, I am absolutely ready to hear detailed thoughts and to have the detailed discussion about how one improves all these different things, and I am pleased that the hon.…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)I thank the Minister; I think that very clearly did not rule out the Government doing exactly what are doing to level 7 apprenticeships to level 6. It was not quite phrased in…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)I give the hon. Lady the national-level data—I think I did already—because I do not have in my head the data for every constituency. At the national level, we had twice as many…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)Such was the low level of quality—such was the total absence of any training or meaningful content in the apprenticeship. What we had was an abuse. What we had was employers being…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)But, as she rises to her feet, perhaps she will tell me if she does want to go backwards to frameworks.13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)I am not sure what the question is. Is the hon. Lady asking whether what I said about the 2015 report was correct?13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)Just to reassure the lady, the numbers are correct. Although I do not encourage people to use mobile phones in Committee, Sir Christopher, the hon. Lady can google her way to the…13 Mar 2025HANSARDInstitute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)Sure. A shadow form exists at the moment, but that does not change the longer-term point that if we do not give it its own legislative basis and make it independent of the…13 Mar 2025