§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to encourage young people to stay in further education. [110591]
§ Mr. WicksThe Government want to see all young people staying in learning until 18 and beyond as part of its lifelong strategy. We have injected the biggest ever investment into Further Education to support the expansion of places. We recently announced the Connexions Strategy and Connexions Service to bring together a number of initiatives to secure greater participation by young people. We are also piloting Education Maintenance Allowances for young people in 15 areas, and we will consider extending them nationally if they are successful.