Gordon Brown’s cabinet reshuffle has led to the creation of a new Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS), which is directly responsible for formulating the government’s skills policy in the UK.
 
In a statement issued on Friday (05/06/09), the government said the new super-department, which was formed by merging the Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform (BERR) and the Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills (DIUS), would build Britain’s future economic strengths to compete in a global economy.
 
BIS is headed up by business secretary, Lord Mandelson, while Lord Drayson remains as science and innovation minister and Pat McFadden as business minister.
 
The department’s remit includes formulating policy to develop intermediate and high level skills through public and privately funded life-long training. It is also directly responsible for expanding the number of apprenticeships being delivered.
 
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) said it welcomed the closer alignment of skills and business agendas, but questioned the timing of the move.
 
John Philpot, CIPD public policy director, said: “Although there are definite merits in aligning the skills agenda even more closely with the business agenda, we despair at yet another change in the government's departmental structures for skills. Now is surely not the time to be embarking on yet another reorganisation of the civil service teams responsible for supporting businesses and individuals in boosting skills.”
 
And some L&D professionals say that the lack of any government department with the word education, universities, or colleges in it sends a worrying message that the Labour party no longer takes Tony Blair's "education, education, education" mantra seriously.

University and College Union (UCU) general secretary, Sally Hunt, who represents more than 120,000 academic and teaching professionals working in higher and further education, said: “UCU is very concerned that his merger seems to signal that further and higher education are no longer considered important enough to have a department of their own.

“The fact they have been lumped in with business appears to be a clear signal of how the government views colleges and universities and their main roles in this country.”
 
And the Conservatives were scathing that the government was replacing DIUS only two years after setting it up for £7m.
 
“It is a complete shambles,” said shadow innovation, universities and skills secretary, David Willetts. “It must hold some sort of record as one of the shortest-lived government departments ever.”

But Lynne Sedgmore CBE, the executive director of a further education college principle’s association, the 157 Group, said: “The creation of the new department provides an excellent opportunity to highlight the key role that further education plays in transforming society, delivering locally for communities and business and playing a leading role nationally in innovation.”

Subscribe to TJ news bulletins:

| Subscribe to our L & D RSS Feed

Related News

• Meredith Belbin opinion
• Leitch Review of UK Skills
• Legal update

Related Discussion Topics

• Protecting my work
• Can anyone recommend a speaker on China
• Tenders and Member Zone

Latest News

• New award recognises organisations that invest in employee wellbeing
• Employers failing to Integrate talent management and diversity
• Health sector workforce skills need to be utilised more effectively, report finds
• Millionth worker completes training through Train to Gain
• Last week to apply for cash in return for help in NEET survey