Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)

I start by saying how grateful I am for the contributions to this debate and for the thoughtful scrutiny. I have learned a lot from my noble friend Lord Jones about the background and I thank him for his input on that. It is important that we all understand where we have come from and where we are hoping to get to in this important debate. All the contributions have highlighted the scale of the challenge facing us. As the noble Lord, Lord Hunt, outlined, this is one of our most economically vital sectors, responsible for £200 billion of output and the employment of over 2 million people. The future of our economy and our ability to grow depends on this. As shown in the tenor of the contributions today, we need to make sure that over the coming decade we have a stable and collective system of investing in training, as well as looking at new initiatives. What we can all absolutely say is that market forces alone will not deliver the pipeline of skilled workers that the industry urgently needs, whether in meeting the demand for new homes or, as the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett, quite rightly said, for the complex issue of retrofitting, which sounds straightforward but we know is not—it is exceptionally challenging. Against the bedrock of the need for economic growth, the transition to net zero is a fundamental driver in our ability and our attempts to make the progress that we need to. There is a focused skills strategy now. It recognises that the construction industry is at its centre and, as has been raised by all, it must benefit and bring support for all sizes of business. It is that unique make-up of the sector that provides opportunities but also presents enormous challenges. We have to make sure that where we offer training it is of the highest quality. It is not just about young people; it is about retraining and upskilling the existing workforce to make sure that they can progress in their careers. Specifically, I say to my noble friend, there were 24,470 apprenticeships in construction for the year 2024-25, representing 7% of all starts. I am afraid that we do not have the number of graduate apprenticeships, so I cannot answer that specific question. I will move on to the wider package of support. From a personal perspective, having worked in this space in my previous role, I know that the initiatives aimed at supporting the mayoral authorities are fundamental, making sure that the approach can be delivered locally as well as being supported from the centre, and having a real understanding of the local jobs market, environment and training needs and the relationships that need to be built to do that. The Government are delivering major investment to strengthen construction skills and the wider skills system. The £625 million construction skills package includes £100 million to expand the construction skills boot camps, £98 million for industry placements and around £100 million to establish 10 technical excellence colleges, boosting opportunities for young people through a £90 million uplift for construction courses for 16 to 19 year-olds and £75 million for adult retraining. This recognises the immediate needs and the fact that we need to bring new young people in and make the whole area attractive to young people. We have been through a phase where it has not been so attractive, but the opportunities are enormous.