§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any proposals to make it more attractive for building trades employers to finance, in part or in whole, formal training courses for their employees at institutions of further education; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NichollsNo. The Government provide considerable support for initial training through YTS and various adult training schemes administered by the Manpower Services Commission. The industry benefits from this support but the main responsibility for the training of building trades employees lies with their employers, individually and through the construction industry training board. The board operates a levy/grant scheme which aims to spread the costs of training across the industry.
However, the Manpower Services Commission, in collaboration with the Department of Education and Science and Inland Revenue, is preparing to issue, early in 1988, a guide to tax reliefs for employers' expenditure on education and training.