South Holland the Deepings MP Sir John Hayes calls for more action to tackle the skills shortage

In the coming weeks, thousands of 18-year-olds will travel to university for the first time. Britain’s best universities, admired and acclaimed globally, are, by any measure, amongst the world’s best.

Yet the rarely-spoken truth is that university is not for everyone. Sadly, successive governments have been afraid to say as much, as, over time, the numbers going to university have skyrocketed. When I was an undergraduate in the 1970s, barely more than 50,000 people a year graduated, whereas by 2022 there were 2.86 million. Back then, only ten per cent of young people left school to go to study some kind of degree, now almost 50% of people do so.

However, once they leave, many are disappointed with what their ‘degree’ means with over a third of graduates finding themselves ‘over-qualified’ for their eventual, ‘lower-skilled’ jobs. Whilst some of what’s learned is of immense value, all too often, students are used as cash-cows to subsidise low-quality qualifications.

Ever since Tony Blair unwisely pushed for half of the population to attend university, resources have been disproportionately directed to that sector which often offers too little to too many young people. So, from the 1960s onwards, alternate routes and destinations were undervalued and underpromoted. Knowing this, as the Minister responsible for Skills, I led the Government’s work to revitalise practical and vocational learning and change attitudes to apprenticeships. Having led a huge expansion in the number and range of apprenticeships, I was proud of altering the national conversation about practical learning, but there is much more to do.

Recently, the New Conservatives, of which I am President, published a paper on how to upskill Britain and avoid young people falling into the trap of enrolling at a university when it is not in their interests to do so. After all, even those who will end up with the kind of university degrees that offer neither academic rigour nor any competence likely to lead to employment are obliged to pay fees and therefore be burdened by a huge debt.

The underestimation of the value of high-quality technical and vocational education led to a national skills shortage, meaning we have relied on immigration to fill our skills gaps, rather than investing in quality training.

The Government must expand the availiability of technical qualifications and support educational institutions that provide them.

Rather, apprenticeships – where people learn valuable skills in workplaces while getting paid for doing so – need to be encouraged, expanded and celebrated.

Though some people fantasise about the AI of technology giants, in reality it is practical skills that can shape a better future. It is engineers and enterpreneuers, mechanics and manufacturers, farmers and food technicians who have and will make the most difference.

Moreover, the small and medium sized businesses that form the backbone of our economy, employing millions of skilled workers, keep this country working.

Locally, schools, further education colleges and private training providers are equipping learners with valuable competences to provide them with fulfilling, lifelong skills and the nation with a workforce fit for the future. The dedicated endeavour of further education providers is essential to upskilling our population to meet the demands of tomorrow.

The great writer and thinker John Ruskin said: “education is the leading of human souls to what is best, and making what is best out of them.”

The best for each of us is the fulfillment of our potential through manifest tastes and talents which, when matched by opportunities, direct such aptitude to a rewarding purpose. So lets, at last, recognise that academic accomplishment is far from all that matters; indeed, many things matter a great deal more.