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Written question asked by Gordon Marsden (Labour) on Friday, 16 December 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 20 December 2005. It was answered by Phil Hope (Labour) on Monday, 9 January 2006 on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills.

WorldSkills Competition

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the impact of hosting the WorldSkills Competition in the UK on the (a) economy and (b) skills levels of (i) the host regional areas and (ii) the UK.
Answer

It is difficult to assess the potential impact of an event such as the WorldSkills Competition as it has benefits to the UK, to the host region, and a number of wider, less tangible, legacy effects. These benefits include enhancing the value which, as a nation, we place on skills, changing our attitudes towards vocational and academic qualifications, raising the aspirations of individuals, providers and employers, and improving permanently the supply of and demand for world class skills in the UK.Prior to submitting our Expression of Interest PricewaterhouseCoopers was commissioned to carry out a study looking at the feasibility of a UK bid to host WorldSkills. Their report considered the wider social and economic benefits of a UK bid. The hosting region would benefit directly from increased visitor expenditure, as well as from visitor travel to and from the event. Other benefits, for both the region and the UK as a whole, would include an enhanced commitment to skills development, increased attainment in skills and participation in training, leading to increased productivity and earnings. In addition, because highly trained people tend to have higher lifetime earnings, this would be expected to lead to additional taxation receipts which would benefit the UK as a whole over time.The UK bid is adopting a partnership approach as a way of securing direct and indirect legacy effects throughout the UK. At its first meeting on 7 December, the UK wide Steering Group confirmed the value of this approach and stressed the importance of ‘diversity' and ‘inclusion' to help build a sustainable skills competitions infrastructure in each region of the UK. This has the support of the Government and Ministers in each of the Devolved Administrations and will help to make the UK bid distinctive and, hopefully successful.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
39309; 441 c440W
Session
2005-06
Subjects
WorldSkills
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk