Education (Further Education) Bill - Second Reading

Questions the Secretary of State's proposal to remove BTEC qualifications based on expert evidence against such a move.

Welcomes positive aspects of the Secretary of State's previous role but raises concerns about the 41% drop in apprenticeship take-up.

Welcomes the Bill and acknowledges its potential but questions why disadvantaged white British students are not obtaining sufficient qualifications for further education or employment.

Praises the Secretary of State's work on T-levels and asks him to visit Peter Symonds College, which has done well with post-16 capacity funding.

Asks how those without level 2 qualifications can access the skills guarantee programme.

Presses for clarification on the Secretary of State's intentions regarding BTEC qualifications, pointing out previous concerns raised in the Lords.

Raises concern about lack of climate change education and calls for embedding environmental topics into post-16 curriculum.

Kate Green acknowledges the need for skills improvement and further education but criticises the Conservative government's record over the past decade. She supports Labour’s approach to lifelong learning, embedding digital skills in all subjects, providing professional careers advice, and ensuring every adult has opportunities to retrain and reskill. She raises concerns about T-levels potentially reducing student choice, funding cuts affecting BTECs, and the lack of clarity around routes to university through vocational qualifications like T-levels. Green also highlights Labour's support for local skills improvement partnerships involving metro Mayors and local leaders.

I am pleased that there is still a promise to keep BTECs, but I have concerns about reducing student choice and denying students from disadvantaged backgrounds opportunities for social mobility. The success of BTECs in driving social mobility should not be ignored, with almost half of white working-class students entering university with at least one BTEC qualification. Concerns remain about the T-level curriculum and who will be able to access them. Local colleges have already built relationships with employers, offering a varied choice of qualifications and employment opportunities. The Bill must ensure local leaders get a say in how ERBs are formed.

He supports the Bill's emphasis on employer-led standards for qualifications. He highlights the importance of closing skill gaps to compete with other countries and mentions that universities also have a role in delivering level 4 and 5 qualifications.

He commends the emphasis on employer-led qualifications and highlights the pioneering work of Northern Regional College in bringing employers together with students to secure proper employment.

She thanks Gavin Williamson for his time as Secretary of State and acknowledges the importance of further education in levelling up. She supports the emphasis on employer-led qualifications.

She opposes scrapping BTECs, arguing that they have been a lifeline for many young people. She cites statistics showing 30% of students choose to study BTECs and highlights their role in social mobility for white working-class and black students entering university.

He questions whether Gavin Williamson committed to maintaining BTECs where they are high quality, suggesting that Marie Rimmer's understanding of the Secretary of State's position is incorrect.

Chris Skidmore thanked the Secretary of State for his speech and highlighted the need for cross-party consensus to improve the Bill. He emphasised that 80% of adults in work by 2030 will require new forms of skills, reskilling, and upskilling due to climate change challenges. He advocated for expanding the lifetime skills guarantee and abolishing the equivalent or lower qualification rule. Skidmore also declared his interest as the founder of a Lifelong Education Commission and stressed the importance of involving local communities in education reforms. He proposed that universities should be included in the local skills improvement plans.

Daniel Poulter interjected to support Skidmore's suggestion, welcoming the improved approach of involving metro Mayors and combined authorities. He suggested that local enterprise partnerships should also be involved in a truly locally driven skills agenda.

Margaret Greenwood interjected to express concern over the privatisation of healthcare mentioned by Skidmore in relation to localised approaches, suggesting it could make access to healthcare harder for people.

Wilson welcomed the Government's focus on skills and further education but criticised the Bill for lacking ambition. She supported amendments made in the other place to phase out BTEC funding over four years, retain universal credit conditionality changes, and ensure climate change is a key part of local skills improvement plans.

Supports the focus on adult education in the Bill but argues for flexibility, particularly regarding local enterprise partnerships and chambers of commerce. Emphasises the importance of multiple pathways to ensure people can access higher-wage jobs locally. Mentions specific initiatives benefiting Ipswich and Suffolk, such as the maritime skills academy and tech camp.

Strongly supports further education and alternative routes to higher education or skills. Advocates for better social mobility through devolution in England. Critiques the lack of support for lower-level apprenticeships and BTECs, calling for security and employer confidence. Raises concerns about local accountability and democratic control.

Emphasises the need to support skills across the UK, particularly post-covid-19. Supports T-levels and their impact on career aspirations. Highlights the importance of improving literacy rates for better access to further education and employment opportunities.

Expresses concern over the government's plan to withdraw support for BTEC qualifications, arguing that it risks holding back 80,000 students from achieving a level 3 qualification. He emphasises that BTECs are valued by employers and universities and calls on the Government to abandon their plans.

Welcomes the Bill's intention but raises concerns about scrapping BTECs entirely. He suggests rationalising them instead of binning them in their entirety and encourages more flexibility around T-levels to ensure that people who want to do a T-level in early years education can access it despite not excelling at trigonometry.

Highlights the importance of BTECs and expresses relief that peers have succeeded in amending the Bill to specify that funding for BTEC qualifications will not be withdrawn until there is strong evidence that they no longer meet demands. She also raises concerns about special educational needs being overlooked in local skills improvement plans.

Supports the direction of the Government's intentions but emphasises the importance of a partnership between business and training providers to ensure that students are aware of all educational opportunities, not just university options.

Supports the Bill for technical education, which is crucial for decades. BTECs vary in quality and need scrutiny. Priorities should align with employer needs, not providers alone. Great Grimsby has excellent further education but lacks seafood sector qualifications. LSIPs should include all types of employers and educators. The Secretary of State's sign-off ensures alignment with local skills needs.

Supports Bill aims but finds it too weak after a decade of neglect. Short-sighted education policy and Brexit exacerbate worker shortages. BTECs have helped many, yet the Government plans to scrap funding despite opposition from professionals and 86% of respondents against overlapping qualifications with A-levels and T-levels. Lord Baker also opposes proposals.

Welcomes the Bill’s emphasis on lifelong learning, local economic links, and place-based governance. Malvern Hills College closure case highlights need for protecting educational institutions valued by communities. The college has been in operation for nearly a century and should be supported.

Ms Hopkins argues that BTECs are essential for social mobility, providing a viable pathway after GCSEs. She cites research indicating that 44% of white working-class students and 37% of black students enter university with at least one BTEC qualification. She raises concerns about the budget cuts and their impact on students' futures.

Drummond supports the Bill but suggests that it should address post-16 education issues by focusing on a 14 to 18 curriculum. She highlights a shortage of skills in the economy and argues for replacing GCSEs with a school leaving certificate at age 18, including academic, technical, and vocational qualifications.

Anderson is concerned about the scrapping of BTEC qualifications and urges the Government to revisit its plans. She discusses significant pay gaps between further education teachers and schoolteachers, affecting recruitment and retention. She also mentions that T-levels have too high an entry barrier compared to BTECs.

Hunt welcomes the Bill as it places employers at the heart of the skills system, enabling collaboration between employers and education providers. She highlights the thriving education sector in Loughborough and supports the confirmation from the Secretary of State that BTEC qualifications are still recognised.

Supports the bill and criticises underfunding of further education. Emphasises importance of climate education in post-16 curriculum, flexible learning options like I-START, and retaining BTECs.

Supports the bill for its commitment to local economy skills needs and lifelong learning entitlement. Praises Milton Keynes' innovation in technology and modular learning, but raises concerns about inclusiveness of online providers in school improvement plans and disparity in funding between full/part-time and modular study.

Calls for adequate funding to reverse austerity's impact on further education. Supports Lords amendment 29 to maintain BTECs until T-levels are fully rolled out, citing their importance and the potential damage of scrapping them.

Welcomes the Bill as an opportunity to address longstanding issues. Supports statutory footing for lifetime skills guarantee, calls for reforming universal credit conditions to access education and training more readily, and emphasises proper investment in colleges like East Coast College.

Supports the Bill, commending it for its positive step in addressing underachievement among disadvantaged white British youth. Emphasises the importance of targeting educational needs and praises the £3 billion investment to support apprenticeships. Argues that both academic and practical education are essential for success.

Welcomes the Bill, noting it addresses key issues faced by businesses in finding skilled workers. Highlights Warrington’s use of towns fund deal to tackle skills shortages and invests in specific sectors like health care and construction engineering. Advocates for phased introduction of T-levels to enhance vocational education.

Congratulates the Department for Education on the Bill, criticising previous Labour policies that focused narrowly on university entry. Emphasises the importance of vocational education and calls for statutory footing to lifetime skills guarantee and extension to level 3 courses. Advocates for environmental goals in local skills plans.

The speaker criticises the current government's approach to BTECs as damaging for students currently enrolled in these courses. He raises concerns about the impact on opportunities for disadvantaged communities and highlights inconsistencies regarding local democratic accountability in areas without metro Mayors. Additionally, he discusses issues with funding changes and calls for a more thorough research before implementing new policies.

During an intervention, Christian Wakeford asked Toby Perkins about his opinion on reducing qualifications from over 12,000 to fewer than 1,000 based on international comparisons.

Intervened to counter Alex Burghart's claim about Labour leaving office in a state of growth, arguing that austerity policies implemented by the Conservative government reversed economic progress.