UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, has confirmed that the number of engineering and manufacturing apprenticeships offered in the UK is to rise, which will ensure a highly skilled future workforce.
Speaking at the Royal Academy of Engineering Awards held at Battersea Power Station in London last week, Mr Osborne said that his administration's specific focus on apprenticeships would “equip future engineers to compete against emerging countries”, Just Auto reported.
The growth in the number of apprenticeships on offer was seen as a significant “competitive driver” for the UK and its workforce, against a backdrop of an increasingly competitive global skills base.
Mr Osborne said: "We are a nation of engineers. We invented the steam engine, iron bridge and the jet engine. There are companies up and down this country disproving the idea engineering is over."
"The fact is in recent decades, the UK has not done enough to encourage new engineers. We are increasing manufacturing and engineering apprenticeships by 30 per cent,” he added.
The Chancellor also went on to say that there were plans to “overhaul the curriculum in our colleges and in our higher education establishments” in order that UK students “have a chance of competing on a level with their competitors in Shanghai”.
The comments follow the recent announcement made by UK Business Secretary, Vince Cable, of an additional