Government will not meet Leitch Review targets and solve skills shortage with cash from Comprehensive Spending Review

The government must not rely on throwing money at the Leitch Review targets, employers warned after the Comprehensive Spending Review last week.

It is just as important that schools produce a “better supply” of skilled people, according to the EEF.

The manufacturers’ body welcomed the £2.8bn budget increase over three years for the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS), as outlined in Alistair Darling’s speech last week, but said the real issue was ensuring that correct systems were in place to tackle the skills shortage.

Last week, DIUS said the budget boost would enable it to “make real progress against the Leitch ambitions for world-class skills”.

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But Steve Radley, chief economist at the EEF, told Personnel Today: “The government has got a key job in terms of ensuring we see a better supply of people coming out of the education system with good basic skills. Employers aren’t required to invest to correct those deficiencies.”

Spending across the Civil Service will grow by just 2.1% over the next three years – hitting the Department for Work and Pensions hardest according to unions, which last week warned of job cuts.