Education, Children and Young People Committee 03 December 2025 [Draft]
I think that John Mason will find that there is great demand for apprenticeships. Currently, that demand is unmet. If you listen to employers, as I am sure John Mason has done, you will find that they are crying out for those. That is particularly the case in the small and medium-sized enterprise sector, which we all know is a huge element of the Scottish economy. More people work in SMEs than in large-scale businesses, and SMEs are desperately keen to bring on apprenticeships, particularly for young people.
I do not think that the question is whether the demand exists; it is whether we have the will and accept our moral responsibility to make that provision when public funding is required, and that is what my amendment would do.
Amendments 96, 97 and 98 would build on that commitment of equality of opportunity. Amendment 96 would provide that the council must ensure that apprenticeships
“include pathways targeted at—
(a) unemployed persons,
(b) persons seeking to change careers, and
(c) persons at risk of labour market exclusion.”
Amendment 97 would oblige the Funding Council to
“promote and support school-to-work pathways, including school college partnerships, foundation apprenticeships and work-based learning for senior phase pupils.”
Amendment 98 would require the council to
“take steps to expand the range and number of graduate apprenticeship frameworks”
and,
“in doing so, prioritise sectors experiencing skills shortages”.
The amendments are targeted specifically at those who are either left out or are at risk of being left out of the labour market. They are targeted to reduce economic inactivity and, crucially, to ensure equality of opportunity across the board. As members will have detected from my remarks, I have a commitment—as I am sure they do—to the concept of creating more equal opportunity in our country and our economy.
Amendments 99 and 100 would strengthen the link between funding and quality. They would require ministers and the council to ensure that funding does not simply support provision but supports provision that is fit for purpose and capable of delivering meaningful outcomes.
We recognise that apprenticeships are not simply another educational pathway; they are a contract of sorts between the state, the learner and the employer. When that contract is honoured, productivity rises, job prospects improve and the system commands public confidence. When funding is detached from quality, the entire system risks mediocrity. The amendments would provide a safeguard against that outcome.
Amendment 119 addresses the long-standing problem of volatility in apprenticeship funding. The availability of places in Scotland too often fluctuates unpredictably from year to year. We have seen that happen particularly in the past two or three years. That creates uncertainty for employers and learners alike, along with everyone else in that ecosystem.
Apprenticeships require continuity. Businesses must know when they are planning that, if they invest in new talent, the system will support them. Amendment 119 would require ministers to consider stability and continuity in funding, so that the apprenticeship system can grow rather than lurch from one year to the next.
I am bound to point out that, in respect of the current amount of money that is raised and allocated to Scotland through the apprenticeship levy every year, we are spending nothing like the amount of money that is designated for apprenticeships on apprenticeships, to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds.
Taken together, the amendments present a coherent view of what a modern, effective funding system must look like. It must be transparent, predictable and aligned with economic need. As I said in response to John Mason earlier, there is undoubtedly genuine demand for apprenticeships. Together, these amendments are all about high-quality provision that equips Scotland’s workforce for the future. Those are principles that my party, the Scottish Conservatives, have championed consistently throughout the scrutiny of the bill, and they are principles that would make the legislation better. I know the minister well enough to know that his motivation would be to make it work better.
Apprenticeships and work-based learning are not peripheral concerns; they are central to Scotland’s productivity, competitiveness and opportunity. If the funding system is weak, the entire structure weakens with it. That is why the amendments in my name in the group seek to strengthen the bill, which I believe urgently needs reinforcement if it is to mean anything.
I invite colleagues to support amendments 94, 96 to 100 and 119.