HC Deb 05 March 1985 vol 74 cc769-70
11. Mr. Alexander

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he is satisfied with the level of apprenticeship in craft skills being offered by the building industry and the training that is otherwise available.

Mr. Peter Morrison

The Construction Industry Training Board is generally satisfied with the level of training in the industry. However, the board is encouraging employers to reform training arrangements so that national skill shortages are avoided.

Mr. Alexander

Is it not the case that people who are trained in craft skills often find it difficult to obtain continuity of work and adequate rewards for their skills? Is there anything that my hon. Friend can do to encourage the use of craft skills, particularly in the building industry, or is it impossible that, for example, we should ever again build Westminster Hall?

Mr. Morrison

I think that my hon. Friend and I would disagree on one point. As far as I am concerned, it is more important to get more people into the right sort of training. For example, thanks to the youth training scheme, in the Construction Industry Training Board area, 18,000 people last year had the first year's training, and 90 per cent. have gone on to further skills training. That has to be good for them and for the industry.

Mr. Loyden

Does the Minister agree that because of system building and the virtual moratorium on public sector building the prospects of obtaining apprenticeships in the building industry today are poor? What efforts do the Government intend to make to ensure that the building industry is capable of providing apprenticeships for traditional building?

Mr. Morrison

The hon. Gentleman cannot have heard my last reply, when I said that last year 90 per cent. of the 18,000 participants in the Construction Industry Training Board youth training scheme were taken on by the industry for a further year's training. That is a good record by any standards.

Mr. Penhaligon

Would the Minister allow a young person who had completed the extra year's training to do major construction work on his own property?

Mr. Morrison

That would depend.

Mr. John Mark Taylor

Does my hon. Friend share the growing doubts about the role of the Construction Industry Training Board? Is it not arguable that it is absorbing more in contributions than doing good in training?

Mr. Morrison

If my hon. Friend consulted widely in the construction industry he would discover that the majority of employers still have confidence in the Construction Industry Training Board.