Andy Bernham has stated that the education department (DFE) for regional mayors is promoting efforts to promote efforts to promote skills and risks.
The Greater Manchester mayor told the MPs in other parts of the country to their counterparts that the local efforts to improve technical education and promote the workforce were being asked by the department, which he said that he said that “wasting time” to promote economic growth “.
During an appearance before the Commons Business and Trade Committee, Mr. Bernham was asked what his “greatest frustration” was during his tenure as Mayor.
He said that “evidence is clear” that the current model of deviation in Greater Manchester is correct and distributes economic growth.
But Mr. Bernham said: “Desperate, to answer your question: the biggest education is for education, without a shadow of doubt.
“Now we are remakeing the case for deviation for this department? I have been doing it for eight years.
“It is for this reason that you can create a strong technical education route when you can work with real employers in your city area who will appoint young people, or old workers, who will come through.
“We are the only ones that can make that path. We are the only ones that can commission our colleges for the real regional powers of our economy, and yet it seems that it has been opposed.
“I think the status of the department for education on this issue becomes an one-anti-development policy. It pulls back the growth that we have received.”
The Greater Manchester Joint Authority, currently has a training and adult skills full control of budget, but still not safe for the deviation of 16–19 education expenses.
Mr. Bernham has created a “Greater Manchester Bachalaoriete”, which he has described as the “university route” alternative, but he was clearly disappointed at the alleged resistance to his plans in Whitehall.
The latest official figures show that 11.2% of youth in the northwest of England are not in education, employment or training.
Mr. Bernham said: “We know our employers. I am calling my employers to achieve those work placements, actually to create those extra routes for our young people, and now to fall that we are still arguing for it and getting permission to do so that I just think to waste time.”
The Greater Manchester Joint Authority has created an online portal called Bine, which enables users to search for some jobs in the field and search for educational routes.
Mr. Bernham said that the portal currently shows about 450 vacancies for software developers.
He said that if the “top-down” approach without local flexibility continues, then high level young people will not be surprised at a high level of youth who are missing from job opportunities.
Mr. Bernham admitted that the department “went down a little down with us … went down” and he welcomed Kaushal England’s capacity, which would work with joint officials, businesses and training providers to promote jobs when it started this year.
He said, “But I want to leave the committee without any doubt, in my voice there is urgency that we are growing rapidly, but we may quickly have a vacancy problem that removes investors. That is why it is mission-critical for this government.”
The Education Department has been contacted for comment.
