Scottish Labour will use funds saved from reform of the enterprise agencies to meet a shortfall in support for apprenticeship training.
Party leader Anas Sarwar is setting out new plans for Scotland’s skills system ahead of Scottish Labour’s policy conference this weekend.
Labour says hundreds of qualified apprenticeship applicants are being turned away despite demand for workers. Last year the SNP government funded nearly 9,000 fewer apprenticeships than colleges and industry requested. Meanwhile. more than one in eight young people in Scotland is unemployed.
It emerged in the summer that the SNP government had failed to pass on over £170 million of funding that was intended for apprenticeships.
Labour said it will address unmet demand in Scotland’s apprenticeship system by boosting funding so that every qualified applicant in priority sectors and occupations can be guaranteed a place.
The cost of the additional apprenticeships is estimated to be around £36 million a year, based on an average cost of £4,000 per apprenticeship.
This funding will come from reform of Scotland’s agency landscape, including reviewing the functions of Scottish Enterprise, at least £20 million of reprofiled Skills Development Scotland funding, and pausing elements of the education reform programmes.
The intervention comes after the Scottish Parliament voted this week to criticise the SNP’s record on skills and back some of Labour’s proposals.
Under Scottish Labour’s plans, any qualified apprenticeship candidate will be guaranteed a place in a sector where workers are needed – a move that will help bridge the gap between the number of apprenticeships requested and the number delivered.
This pledge forms part of a wider set of proposals from Scottish Labour to better link up education and skills with the world of work.
This includes proposals for a university-style clearing system for Scotland’s apprenticeship system and plans to give colleges a clearer economic remit and align their funding with economic priorities.
Mr Sarwar said “The SNP is consigning young people to the scrapheap while businesses are scrambling to find the skills they need.
“If we are going to tackle the housing emergency, win the global race on green jobs and strengthen our national security we need the skilled workers to do it – but young people are being turned away from these opportunities.
The Scottish Conservatives are also calling on more funding for apprenticeships as they say millions of pounds of proposed government funding has “vanished”.
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said this has created a “skills gap” that is holding back young people and businesses.
“Right now there’s about 25,000 people on apprenticeships in Scotland,” said Mr Findlay. “We believe that number should be much higher; we are aiming for at least 36 or 37,000 people doing apprenticeships, because the money’s there for it.”
Earlier this year, Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth said: ““Supporting apprenticeships is just one part of the £2 billion we are investing each year in colleges, universities and the wider skills system, recognising the vital role they play in education and the economy.”
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