Priti, Chris and Lee during their tour of the South East Galvanizer plant, which is on Crittall Road industrial estate in Witham.
Witham MP calls on Government to make apprenticeship levy more flexible
Priti Patel, the Member of Parliament for the Witham constituency, has called on the Government to ensure that the apprenticeship levy is more agile and flexible, and supporting businesses to employ apprentices.
During a visit to South East Galvanizers (part of the Wedge Group) based in her constituency, Priti met with Managing Director Chris Woolridge to discuss their concerns about the current system not being fit for purpose and in need of improvements.
Particular issues were highlighted with the current effectiveness of the levy, and that the system is not encouraging young people to join certain sectors in need of apprentices such as galvanizing businesses.
Priti said: “It was good to meet with Chris and discuss his concerns about the Apprenticeship Levy, something that I myself raised with the Education Secretary in Parliament back in April.
It is concerning to hear that there are a number of vacancies which remain unfilled, leading to skill shortages that impact upon the ability of businesses’ to grow.
The Government must engage with industry to ensure schemes such as the Apprenticeship Levy are delivering the next generation of skilled workers which will help our economy grow.”