Conservative Manifesto 2019

Invest in Britain’s
people
The 2020s will see a transformation
in jobs. Automation and computing
will change how businesses function.
Our plan to deliver clean energy and
a carbon-neutral future means new
kinds of jobs in new industries. And
our departure from the European
Union means we can develop forwardlooking
regulations to ensure we are
first in line to develop and benefit
from the technologies of the future.
This requires a dramatic rebooting
of our training system – to support
public services, existing businesses
and the businesses of the future.
But above all, we want to ensure
that Britain’s workers have the skills
they need to flourish – and that
every citizen of this country has the
opportunity to express their talents to
the fullest.
Levelling up Britain’s
skills
Since 2010, the Government has
invested significantly in technical
qualifications and apprenticeships,
with 3.8 million more apprenticeships.
In the next Parliament, we expect to
train up hundreds of thousands more
highly skilled apprentices. But we will go
further and require significant numbers
of new UK apprentices for all big new
infrastructure projects – new hospitals,
new schools, major transport projects
and so on, being built with pride by a new
generation of British workers.
Whatever age you are, nothing is more
Conservative than working hard to
improve your lot – and nothing is more
important for the Conservative Party
than supporting people in those efforts.
Our reforms and investment in
education and skills mean more
children are leaving school better
equipped for working life and there are
more high quality apprenticeships. But
there is much more to do to level up
the skills of the entire nation. Not just
to improve Britain’s productivity, but to
enable people to fulfil their potential.
As the centrepiece of our plan, we
will create a new National Skills
Fund worth £3 billion over the next
Parliament. This fund will provide
matching funding for individuals and
SMEs for high-quality education and
training. A proportion will be reserved
for further strategic investment in
skills, and we will consult widely on the
overall design.
The National Skills Fund will help to
transform the lives of people who
have not got onto the work ladder and
lack qualifications, as well as people
Gary Hynds
Candidate for Lagan Valley
Administrative Assistant
who are keen to return to work from,
say, raising a family, or switch from
one career to another. It will not only
make this country more prosperous,
but fairer.
Just as universities have been
transformed by significant long-term
investment over the last few decades,
we need to make sure local colleges
are equally excellent places for people
to learn. We are therefore investing
almost £2 billion to upgrade the entire
further education college estate.
And we’ll also have 20 Institutes
of Technology, which connect
high-quality teaching in science,
technology, engineering and maths to
business and industry.
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