Speeches by Greenwood.

“From my perspective, it is about priorities. We know that there has been a really large decline in the number of young people starting apprenticeships: around 40% down in the last 10 years. Frankly, that is just not acceptable. It is not good enough. We want to reverse that trend, and our decisions reflect that. The fo…”

“No. Over the course of the last hour, we have talked a lot about the things that we are investing in, in order to upskill our existing workforce. It is just a reprioritisation, in terms of the Skills and Growth Levy funding going into apprenticeships; we are really concerned about young people. It is quite a shocking s…”

“We are getting the balance right. As I have set out, there is a huge challenge for our young people in making sure that we are equipping them to have long and fruitful careers. We cannot have a situation where one in seven young people is not in education, employment or training. We really need to change that, but we a…”

“It would be even better if they said, “It’s my mum.” We need more young people—especially young women and people from a different variety of backgrounds—seeing the possibility of a career in transport manufacturing.”

“As we look to the future, we know that demands on our transport system are going to only grow. We have a huge shift to zero emission vehicles, the integration of digital technologies and automation. There is a profound transformation going on when it comes to transport, and if we do not get it right on skills, then fra…”

“That probably is best addressed by Sarah because I know that Skills England is making it easier for people to get into transport manufacturing, by improving those vocational routes and introducing new high-quality qualifications for everybody, actually. That is really important because we want to make sure there are be…”

“Maybe the technological shift that is required in automotive and aerospace is greater than it is in rail. I am guessing a little there. Also, the size of the industries is different.”

“Well, what we are wanting is for Skills England to work really closely with stakeholders in the transport manufacturing industry to understand their needs. So far it has found that the skills challenges in transport manufacturing are very similar to those in the wider advanced manufacturing sector and are obviously bei…”

“It is about showcasing that. It is actually not a small thing when we go out and do that because it is about making it more visible, is it not? It is so that people can see, oh, look, people like me work in that sector and it does not look quite like how I thought it might look. That is really important. We are changin…”

“Okay, so the industrial strategy focuses investment on the sectors with the biggest potential for growth and advanced manufacturing, with a focus on automotive and aerospace. That was identified as an area where the UK is globally competitive, absolutely at the cutting edge of innovation, and offers the most sizable op…”

“I was going to say, from your perspective, it probably is a bit of a work in progress because it is a changing landscape and Skills England is relatively new. I have had the skills within my portfolio for only a relatively short time, but it is really important that we are bringing those insights together and building …”

“That is a really important point, Alex. It is about getting people into the sector in the first place. We know there are outdated views of manufacturing that somehow it is old-fashioned, or dirty, or involves a lot of manual labour. There are physical jobs involved in it, but there is also a wider range of jobs. We als…”

“Look, I am really glad you have asked me that because building an inclusive workforce is not just the right thing to do, it is a bit of a no-brainer really, is it not? You want to bring in the best talent and get people building long-term careers in the manufacturing sector. If you are not fishing from the widest possi…”

“I know that Nissan, for example, runs a skills bootcamp on electric vehicle component manufacturing. That offers people a direct route into employment at its Sunderland factory. That is perhaps an example of a way in that might not be a formal apprenticeship.”

“Absolutely, Antonia. We do not want to lose those fantastic workers, who actually have a huge amount of experience and knowledge, in the transition to new technologies. We want to be able to take them with us and for them to flourish in that new environment. I previously mentioned that the industrial strategy includes …”

“Alan, I do not know if you want to say more about the skills bootcamps. They are specifically to skill people up with the sight of a job at the end of it, which is really important so that young people or other people know about the opportunities that are available and can actually see what the industry looks like. Som…”

“Thanks for your question. The challenges that we face in advanced manufacturing, and transport manufacturing in particular, include a lack of clear pathways for older career changers, a need for better career guidance, and flexible entry routes to support a diverse range of entrants. As you have heard in the other pane…”

“Actually, Alan can probably tell you a lot about skills improvement plans as well.”

“Yes, that is right. Obviously, much of the skills investment is what is being focused on in the advanced manufacturing sector plan. That is drawing on the evidence that is there. The Government are investing, £1.2 billion in skills every year by 2028-29, with targeted support for things like digital, defence and engine…”

“One of the challenges we face in relation to advanced manufacturing more broadly, and obviously transport manufacturing is a subset of that, is attracting our share of STEM graduates. There are lots of people going to university and studying science and engineering degrees, but they are not necessarily coming into manu…”