Digby, Lord Jones of Birmingham admits skills envoy role was still job in progress when he took up ministerial role

Former CBI chief Dibgy, Lord Jones of Birmingham, has admitted that his skills envoy job was only half finished when he left to become minister of trade promotion – but the government will not confirm whether the skills envoy role will continue.

Jones told MPs in a trade and investment committee last week that there was still work to be done in pushing businesses to sign the Leitch skills pledge that he helped launch in June.

He confirmed he had no idea what was happening to his former job and said his new ministerial position was a “coincidence of timing”.

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“The first part of the job was done, which was to take up the Train to Gain pledge to the point where it was launched. He said the second stage, “which I will not be involved in” would be to push the pledge further to British business.

But John Denham, skills secretary at the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, told Personnel Today: “We are considering, with the new organisation [for skills], do we need to separate the skills envoy role out? I will make an imminent announcement.”