Listen: Ex-Skills Minister Anne Milton on the UK’s skills shortages

With the furlough scheme now closed and job vacancies surging to record levels, former training and skills minister Anne Milton and leading learning company, Pearson, have partnered to look at how the government can break the skills deadlock in England, where 62% of business owners say they are worried about being able to recruit staff with the requisite skillset.

Not being able to fill roles is having serious implications for firms across the nation with 21% of those struggling to find the right people admitting they have missed out on new contracts and custom as a result, according to Pearson, with 36% saying it is restricting their expansion plans.

The pandemic has transformed the world of work, leaving many employers needing to retool their staff’s skillset to meet the changing demands of their business and many workers having to upskill to remain relevant in a fast-changing labour market. But the cost of providing on the job training prevents companies from doing so with 42% of people unable to afford a course to add to their qualifications.

Political Editor Johnny Jenkins spoke to Former Skills Minister Anne Milton: