Stewart Jackson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Jackson on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to improve skill levels in the construction industry.

Michael Fallon

Under the auspices of the Construction Leadership Council, the house building industry is developing an action plan to address three immediate priorities: improving the image of house building; attracting back experienced workers who left during the recession; and attracting other workers with relevant skills.

More widely, the Government is making a number of reforms to the skills system to improve skills supply; putting employers in the driving seat and making providers more responsive to their needs.

The Government is also currently undertaking a triennial review of the way the Construction Industry Training Board operates and challenging it on the service it delivers to the sector.

In addition, the Government believes that a more robust and more visible government construction procurement pipeline is key to improving investment decisions in construction. We are working to enhance the pipeline to give construction businesses the confidence to upskill staff, to recruit, and to commit to apprenticeships.