Education blamed for UK skills shortage

Minister for Consumer and Corporate Affairs, Kim Howells, has criticised the education system for failing to adequately prepare graduates for industry's needs.

This month Howells will be touring companies to promote more commitment to staff training, after conceding that education-system failings are only serving to fuel the skills crisis. Research revealed that half of companies in the UK experienced difficulties recruiting skilled staff in the last six months.

LloydsTSB Commercial's bi-annual Business in Britain survey found that the IT and business services sectors were badly affected by the skills crisis, highlighting the skills issue as a growing headache for UK plc.

"Supply is beginning to respond to demand," said Trevor Williams, head of economic research at LloydsTSB Commercial. "However, the focus should be on developing skills. The problems experienced by UK companies should act as a spur for companies to invest in training."

A quarterly review of recruitment trends in the UK has found that while 32 per cent of companies in the computing and IT sector plan to recruit at a managerial level over the next six months, 63 per cent of them expect difficulties finding the right staff.

The Cabinet Office has also published a paper on the scale of the skills gap, and the role immigrants could play in meeting the shortages.

First published in Computing