Manifesto Policy Explainer Education and skills policy

What are the implications for education and skills policy?

Labour:

• Establish ‘Skills England’ to bring together business, training providers, and unions with national and local government to ensure that training accounts for the needs of the labour market.
• Devolve adult skills funding to Combined Authorities to give local leaders greater control of skills development in their areas.
• Replace the Apprenticeship Levy with a Growth and Skills Levy which gives Levy-paying businesses more flexibility to spend funds on a broader set of courses.
• Guarantee two weeks’ worth of work experience for every young person.

Conservatives:

• Fund 100,000 high-quality apprenticeships for young people, paid for by curbing the number of ‘poor-quality’ university degrees.
• Introduce the Advanced British Standard to replace A Levels and T Levels. The ABS would remove the divide between academic and technical education and require all students to study English and maths to 18.

Liberal Democrats:

• Replace the apprenticeship levy with a broader and more flexible skills and training levy.
• Create Lifelong Skills Grants for adults to spend on education and training throughout their lives.
• Strengthen careers advice and links with employers in schools and colleges.

Reform UK:

• Restrict undergraduate numbers below current levels and ensure that two-year university degrees are an option.
• Give tax relief to businesses which undertake apprenticeships.

Green Party:

• Invest £12.4bn in skills and training to equip workers to play a full role in the green economy.

You can read the IoD’s Manifesto for Business here.