Why has Scottish Government not "managed" industry training levy ?

[rob murray]

AN example of more day to day important stuff neglected in the indy re 2 game :

The last UK government announced the new Apprenticeship Levy, which comes into effect from 1 April 2017. All employers in the UK with an annual pay bill of over £3 million will have to contribute to the apprenticeship levy at a rate of 0.5% of their payroll. As the policy is devolved OPITO – the OIl / Gas industry skills training body - has asked the Scottish Government for clarity on how the money from the new tax will be redistributed, on how companies will be allowed to invest the revenues, the type of training which will be included and whether they will be able to transfer the entirety of their own levy funds to other companies

An OPITO spokeswoman said: “The apprenticeship levy is essentially a new skills tax to be collected from employers and we are seeking assurance that the money raised will be ring-fenced for new learning and training infrastructure and initiatives - and not off-set to fund existing programmes or other Government supported schemes which are already in place.

“Around £230 million will be raised annually in Scotland by the Apprenticeship Levy. This must be funnelled into programmes that are going to add legitimate value to skills development in the oil and gas workforce.

“Equally, we need a simple, straight-forward system for employers to access the funds so they can invest them in the right programmes that will get the results both industry and Government want to see.” OPITO is concerned that no decision has been made by the Scottish Government on this, despite the UK Government confirming the amount the Scottish Government will receive and clarifying how the money will be spent in England.

[Oddquine]

AN example of more day to day important stuff neglected in the indy re 2 game :

The last UK government announced the new Apprenticeship Levy, which comes into effect from 1 April 2017. All employers in the UK with an annual pay bill of over £3 million will have to contribute to the apprenticeship levy at a rate of 0.5% of their payroll. As the policy is devolved OPITO – the OIl / Gas industry skills training body - has asked the Scottish Government for clarity on how the money from the new tax will be redistributed, on how companies will be allowed to invest the revenues, the type of training which will be included and whether they will be able to transfer the entirety of their own levy funds to other companies

An OPITO spokeswoman said: “The apprenticeship levy is essentially a new skills tax to be collected from employers and we are seeking assurance that the money raised will be ring-fenced for new learning and training infrastructure and initiatives - and not off-set to fund existing programmes or other Government supported schemes which are already in place.

“Around £230 million will be raised annually in Scotland by the Apprenticeship Levy. This must be funnelled into programmes that are going to add legitimate value to skills development in the oil and gas workforce.

“Equally, we need a simple, straight-forward system for employers to access the funds so they can invest them in the right programmes that will get the results both industry and Government want to see.” OPITO is concerned that no decision has been made by the Scottish Government on this, despite the UK Government confirming the amount the Scottish Government will receive and clarifying how the money will be spent in England.

So the UK Government was just talking crap when it said "A UK Treasury spokesman said it was up to the devolved administrations to decide how the cash would be allocated." What a surprise!

If you are going to go by the Welsh Assembly's take on it, and I don't suspect that the situation in Scotland will be any different,...it is not NEW EXTRA money,
Julie James told AMs that the proceeds would be offset by cuts in funding elsewhere, and the loss of £30m that Welsh public sector employers will have to pay the UK Treasury on the levy.

"The figures that have been released by the UK Treasury do not mean significant new money is coming to Wales."

"They do not take into account reductions made to comparable English programmes, including apprenticeships, and need to be considered as part of the bigger picture, which shows - you'll not be surprised to learn - real terms cuts to the funding available to Wales over the next few years."

"The levy is nothing more than a UK government employment tax which directly conflicts with areas of devolved competence.

"We have our own distinct and very popular approach to apprenticeships ... and this just cuts directly across it.

"Not only do we not have any new money, but clearly all our public services have to pay the levy and so they're deprived of funds. Where, for example is Police Scotland going to find an extra £4.5million on top of its VAT payments to pay the levy?

it's just more spinning by the Tories to disguise cuts........so business as usual for the UK Government.

[rob murray]

So the UK Government was just talking crap when it said "A UK Treasury spokesman said it was up to the devolved administrations to decide how the cash would be allocated." What a surprise!

If you are going to go by the Welsh Assembly's take on it, and I don't suspect that the situation in Scotland will be any different,...it is not NEW EXTRA money,
Julie James told AMs that the proceeds would be offset by cuts in funding elsewhere, and the loss of £30m that Welsh public sector employers will have to pay the UK Treasury on the levy.

"The figures that have been released by the UK Treasury do not mean significant new money is coming to Wales."

"They do not take into account reductions made to comparable English programmes, including apprenticeships, and need to be considered as part of the bigger picture, which shows - you'll not be surprised to learn - real terms cuts to the funding available to Wales over the next few years."

"The levy is nothing more than a UK government employment tax which directly conflicts with areas of devolved competence.

"We have our own distinct and very popular approach to apprenticeships ... and this just cuts directly across it.

"Not only do we not have any new money, but clearly all our public services have to pay the levy and so they're deprived of funds. Where, for example is Police Scotland going to find an extra £4.5million on top of its VAT payments to pay the levy?

it's just more spinning by the Tories to disguise cuts........so business as usual for the UK Government.

Ok explain to me how English Sector Skills Councils have systems, procedures and mechanisms in place to manage the levy and we dont ? Also why the skills development system in England is far more generous than Scotland ( and less bureaucratic / employer friendly ) OPITO along with others require clarity which they haven't got ...or are you the source of scottish clarity ? If you really want to know a working group has been in place since mid 2016 as chaired by the Scottish Training Federation feeding into the government and according to the conference powerpoint I am now quoting from ( being involved in skills I have the scottish information ) in 2014 /15 Skills Development Scotland spent £74 millions on apprenticeships, Scotlands share of the levy will be £200 million, the conference was structured around how this additional £126 millions was to be spent. Overarching position was Funding raised via the Apprenticeship Levy should be spent on Apprenticeship Programmes in Scotland. Questions posed were Q1. Should the Government’s commitment to 30,000 Modern Apprenticeships starts a year by 2020 a) be maintained or b) be increased? Q2. Should Apprenticeship Levy funding support growth in the number of Graduate Level Apprenticeships in Scotland? Q3. Should Apprenticeship Levy funding be used to establish a flexible skills fund to support wider workforce development? Q4. Should Apprenticeship Levy funding be used to support the expansion of Foundation Apprenticeships? Q5. Should Apprenticeship Levy funding be used to help unemployed people move into employment, and to help meet the workforce needs of employers? Q6. Are there any additional suggestions on how Apprenticeship Levy funding might be used?

Again these are not my words but Im quoting from an actual PowerPoint used as part of the process to input into Scottish government ie " Consultation on the Scottish Governments response to the UK apprenticeship levy : workshop as facilitated by the Scottish Training Federation. OPITO et all are quite correct in asking for clarity as OPITO like myself will be getting e mails on iniatives in place in England, but what info have I received from Scottish agencies...nothing, thats because in my view the SNP want the levy to be as you put it portrayed as no new money, WM interference in Scottish training system :

Current state of play for whats its worth is in this report http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0050/00509777.pdf

[rob murray]

for those who are interested please see this url
https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...m_May_2017.pdf

Compare it with the current Scottish situation,which is still at the consultation stage and also notice how transparent the document is... stating funding bandings, systems / procedures etc, miles ahead of scottish scenario, wonder what the excuse will be ? Id say like a lot of things, its been partially addressed as the government has better things to progress, like always advancing the case for independence. We are all paying a huge cost and suffering losses because of this charge for indy.

[rob murray]

So the UK Government was just talking crap when it said "A UK Treasury spokesman said it was up to the devolved administrations to decide how the cash would be allocated." What a surprise!

If you are going to go by the Welsh Assembly's take on it, and I don't suspect that the situation in Scotland will be any different,...it is not NEW EXTRA money,
Julie James told AMs that the proceeds would be offset by cuts in funding elsewhere, and the loss of £30m that Welsh public sector employers will have to pay the UK Treasury on the levy.

"The figures that have been released by the UK Treasury do not mean significant new money is coming to Wales."

"They do not take into account reductions made to comparable English programmes, including apprenticeships, and need to be considered as part of the bigger picture, which shows - you'll not be surprised to learn - real terms cuts to the funding available to Wales over the next few years."

"The levy is nothing more than a UK government employment tax which directly conflicts with areas of devolved competence.

"We have our own distinct and very popular approach to apprenticeships ... and this just cuts directly across it.

"Not only do we not have any new money, but clearly all our public services have to pay the levy and so they're deprived of funds. Where, for example is Police Scotland going to find an extra £4.5million on top of its VAT payments to pay the levy?

it's just more spinning by the Tories to disguise cuts........so business as usual for the UK Government.

Current Scots Govt position as per today :

Industry endorsement for 30,000 Modern Apprenticeship target.


Scotland’s share of funding from the UK Government’s apprenticeship levy should be used to support the delivery of 30,000 Modern Apprenticeships starts by 2020, responses to a consultation have found.
The report on the recent consultation on the apprenticeship levy showed broad employer support for the Scottish Government’s Modern Apprenticeship (MA) targets and employer backing for the planned expansion of Foundation and Graduate Level Apprenticeships and employability and skills services.
Minister for Training and Employability Jamie Hepburn confirmed that in response to employer feedback:

• ‎The number of Graduate Level Apprenticeships will be increased in 2017.
• ‎Levy payers will have opportunities to shape the delivery of apprenticeship and employment programmes going forward.
• ‎The Scottish Government will consider issues raised in the consultation around MA age limits and how to provide more flexibility.
• Skills Development Scotland have been given the go ahead to contract for the delivery of Modern Apprenticeships in 2017/18, as the next stage of the phased expansion to 30,000 MA starts each year by 2020.

The Minister will meet with industry representatives and the newly established Scottish Apprenticeship Advisory Board to discuss the outcome of the consultation and how the levy will be spent in Scotland ahead of the Scottish Government’s budget proposals for 2017-18 being published in the Draft Budget.
The UK Government levy which is introduced in April 2017, will see larger employers pay 0.5% of their annual wage bill directly to the HMRC.
Mr Hepburn said:
“Our increase in Graduate Level Apprenticeships and commitment to involving employers in the development of apprenticeship and skills opportunities will help us develop a distinctly Scottish approach to the way we respond to the apprenticeship levy.
“We have involved employers in every step of the process and kept them fully informed in our discussions because we want to make sure they feel the benefits of the levy, and don’t just see it as an unnecessary financial burden.
“The UK Government forced this levy on Scotland without consultation however given the position we are now in, we have committed to developing an approach that is more flexible and broader than is currently being proposed in England, helps young people, meets the needs of businesses and supports inclusive economic growth.
“We will now work with employers to discuss the outcome of our consultation and our final proposals will be announced later this year.
“In Scotland we are seeing real success in supporting young people into work and making sure they have the right skills for the future. We surpassed our target to deliver 25,500 Modern Apprenticeship last year, which has now increased to 26,000 this year and it’s great to see employers supporting our ambitions to increase starts to 30,000 by 2020.”