Association of Colleges responds to the Government's immigration White Paper

David Hughes, Chief Executive, Association of Colleges said: "Today's immigration White Paper rightly recognises the need to grow our domestic skills and training provision to support priority sectors of the economy. Key elements of the new proposals are welcome, such as the use of the Immigration Skills Charge and the establishment of the Labour Market Evidence Group.

"It is also good to see the Prime Minister recognise the historic underinvestment in skills from both the government and many employers. With 8.5 million adults lacking basic literacy and numeracy skills, and millions economically inactive, it is imperative that we reverse this trend and provide realistic opportunities for people to get the skills that will help them fill skills vacancies.

"We commended the £625 million investment in construction announced in March as a blueprint for the type of investment packages needed in other key skills shortage sectors because it showed new and significant investment from the government as well as a commitment from employers to partner with colleges in order to ensure they have the workforce they need. We would like to see the government utilise the skilled migrant visa fee and the 6% levy on international students to fund similar initiatives for other sectors of the economy as well as funding more English as a Second Language (ESOL) courses. We propose that these charges be appropriated for skills investment through colleges, and we would like to see this included in the upcoming Spending Review. This collaboration can help attract people into their sectors, open up work placements, offer support for teaching, and take on more young apprentices.

"The findings of our ESOL report from January emphasised the importance of delivering those courses for employability. Supporting those already living and working in this country to improve their language competency is crucial for their integration into communities and their contribution to the economy.

"Every college is eager to work in partnership with more employers to help them boost domestic talent. Colleges are the pipeline into training and jobs, and by working closely with businesses, we can ensure that our workforce is equipped with the skills needed for the future."