ECITB welcomes British skills boost in budget

Yesterday, the government committed to:

• Extend the National Productivity Investment Fund by a year to over £31bn.
• Provide an extra £20 million for colleges to deliver T-levels (a relatively new technical qualification) in England.
• Create a national retraining scheme, in partnership with the TUC and CBI, to boost construction and digital skills.
• Address the gender disparity in STEM subjects.
• Deliver 3 million new apprenticeships by 2020 and keep under review how employers spend their Apprenticeship levy.

Chris Claydon, Chief Executive of the ECITB, added,

“The Autumn Budget contains many positive announcements that will benefit the engineering construction industry and skills growth in the wider economy.

“We welcome the extension of the National Productivity Investment Fund, which will deliver a much needed boost to infrastructure. Removing the tax disincentive to transfer North Sea oil and gas fields will also be welcomed by the sector.”

“I’m pleased to see the additional investment earmarked for the delivery of the T-levels and further details on the new National Retraining Scheme. We look forward to working with the Government and its partners to explore how the scheme can benefit the engineering construction industry.”

“The Chancellor also announced that he will keep under review the rules for how the apprenticeship levy is spent. We will work closely with the Government to ensure the apprenticeship levy and the industrial training levy continue to complement each other, providing employers in our industry with the full range of high-quality skills they need to deliver the nation’s critical infrastructure.”