, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Diolch. That's a really good question to finish off with. It relates to some of the answers I've given previously, but this Welsh Government is absolutely committed to widening participation. The fact that we have, as I mentioned earlier on, a lower number of…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Thank you, Vikki. You've hit upon one of the most difficult decisions we will have to make as a Welsh Government. You will know the UK Government has indicated its intention to proceed with a freeze to the plan 2 repayment threshold at the current rate of…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
I couldn't agree more. We only have one of the eight universities as part of the Russell Group of universities, and I would want all of our universities to develop in terms of their offer and their standing in the United Kingdom and across the world. That is…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Thank you very much, Sera. The role of SMEs and small businesses is entirely crucial. I think around 95 per cent of all businesses in Wales are small and medium-sized enterprises. As it happens, in the meeting that I had with representatives from Wales's…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Diolch yn fawr iawn, Sam. Thank you. A number of points and I'll deal with them as you presented them. The first one, working with the university sector: since coming into post, I think I have had more meetings with the university sector than most sectors…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Diolch yn fawr iawn. Thank you, Lynne. A number of important points. I'll start off with your first point around the pressures on FE colleges. We absolutely recognise that there are pressures, as there were last year, which is why Medr allocated an additional…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Thank you. There are so many different aspects there; I'll try to cover as many as I can. Value for money and tuition fees. We recognise the importance of a fair and sustainable system of student support. I look at it in terms of three aspects, in many ways…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Well, thank you very much for those questions.
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
To close, Dirprwy Lywydd, I saw this potential myself at last week’s European Association for International Education conference in Glasgow. There I met representatives from all our universities, and I had productive meetings with them and with international…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
The review will take a comprehensive view of the higher education system. It will examine student support, institutional funding, research and innovation, participation, graduate outcomes, and the organisation and resilience of the sector in Wales. But it…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
But whilst our universities continue to transform lives and contribute to our economic, social and cultural life every day, they are currently, like universities across the United Kingdom, under significant financial pressure, caused by a range of complex and…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Review of Higher Education
Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm pleased to confirm the launch of the independent review of higher education in Wales, following the publication of the terms of reference on 4 August at the Garreg Las National Eisteddfod, in accordance with our…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Many congratulations to Gwenni. She's an exemplar in terms of what can happen when colleges and schools come together to work together.
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Thank you very much, Sera. Very briefly, we must bring the competition between schools and colleges to an end. We need to see more collaboration between them in order to ensure that the provision and the best possible options are available. There are examples…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Just to answer your central point, both the Minister for Education and the Welsh Language and I have had numerous meetings. As you can imagine, all kinds of stakeholders have wanted to meet us and everybody wanted to meet us in that first week. Obviously…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Thank you for the questions.
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
May I thank you, first of all, for asking the question in Welsh? It's great to hear more people in this Chamber using the Welsh language. And perhaps I'd like to take advantage, Dirprwy Lywydd, if I may, to encourage anyone, whatever level of Welsh you have…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Thank you, Kiera. A few of us in the Chamber were members of the sixth Senedd's education committee, and one of the inquiries we undertook was to look at post-16 pathways. One of the clear messages that came out of that inquiry was that we need to provide…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Diolch yn fawr iawn, Sam. Again, a number of really interesting points, and I agree with the context of many of the questions you raise. I'll start off with the skills shortages. I've met with a number of businesses in Sir Gaerfyrddin, but also elsewhere as…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
No, we were sparring partners, but we always got on very well as well because we shared many of the values around education and tertiary education in particular. I'll start off with where you started, about having a connected system—absolutely agree, which is…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Well, diolch, Lynne. There's a lot there, and—
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
There are a number of points and they're really valid, and I value the contribution that you've made, and if I can just take them one at a time. When we start in Government, we look at what skills audits have taken place in recent years. The last skills audit…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Thank you very much for the questions.
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
In short, Dirprwy Lywydd, in closing, our goal is to build a lifelong tertiary education and skills system that works for learners, communities and the economy, and this will be delivered in collaboration with the sector. Thank you.
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
I recognise the vital role that FE colleges and school sixth forms play in transforming learners’ lives and supporting our economy. I am aware of the pressures they face. I've already met stakeholders and will continue to work with the sector to address these…
