Responding to the launch of Skills England, Jane Gratton, Deputy Director of Public Policy at the BCC, said:

“The UK economy has a pervasive skills and productivity problem that stretches back long before the pandemic and Brexit.

“Skills shortages ramp up pressure on firms, damaging their ability to operate profitably and leading to unsustainable wage inflation.

“Alarmingly, our research shows that recruitment difficulties have increased in recent months across all sectors.

“Better planning for skills is crucial. We need a stable and coherent national skills strategy that ensures institutions are delivering the training the economy needs and that gives businesses the confidence to invest for the long term.

“The new government must work at pace to establish Skills England, reviewing and joining up skills initiatives across the departments, aligning with immigration policy, and working closely with the devolved administrations to drive impact for local communities.

“Employers and the economy’s skills needs must remain at the heart of the system. Building on Local Skills Improvement Plans will help develop strong partnerships between employers, training providers and others – to ensure people get the skills and support they need.

“But this will not happen overnight. As we transition to a better planned, high-skilled and high wage economy, we need to ensure firms can access global talent to fill urgent job vacancies.

“This requires a more efficient and effective visa system that can support sectors of the economy when they’ve tried everything they can to recruit and train locally.”