Access to Further and Higher Education

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:40 pm on 9 March 2021.

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Photo of Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford Labour 1:40, 9 March 2021

Llywydd, I thank David Rees for that important question. I know that my colleague Rebecca Evans, as finance Minister, was very keen to find additional funding for the personal learning account programme—£5.4 million additional funding there—because of the outstanding success it has already been. And, as David Rees said, Llywydd, for workers it provides courses and qualifications that are fully funded by the Welsh Government, organised to be manageable around those individuals' existing commitments. They're available regardless of previous qualifications, and 3,000 people have already started personal learning account courses and we have 6,000 and more applications for the scheme.

And for employers, Llywydd, it offers a flexible and responsive scheme designed to overcome current and future skill shortages, sector specific, aimed at new and high growth areas in the green economy, engineering, construction, the digital economy and in advanced manufacturing. And in that way, as David Rees says, we will develop a pool of skilled and committed workers ready to take advantage of those new opportunities and attracting those new opportunities into parts of Wales, creating the jobs of the future.