GTA ‘would be safe with skills agency’
Saturday 27th March 2010, 2:29PM GMT.
The panel at yesterday’s Institute of Directors lunch. (Picture by Peter Frankland, 0940912)
COMMERCE and Employment’s chief officer used yesterday’s IOD lunch to try to allay fears that setting up a skills agency would create more bureaucracy and stifle the GTA University Centre.
The establishment of an agency to oversee all workforce training and education in the island was one of the suggestions in an independent report by Frontier Economics. However, many in the finance industry fear there would be a decline in standards at the GTA if it had to answer to a higher authority.
Jon Buckland said the proposals from the report were still open to consultation and no firm decision had yet been made.
He said Jersey had successfully set up an umbrella skills department at no extra cost to the taxpayer and said the same could be possible here.
‘Frontier believe that the creation of the agency should actually be fiscally neutral in that it can be staffed from existing resources within the States. Jersey have demonstrated that this is achievable, with subsequent improvements in efficiency, transparency and effectiveness.’
However, GTA chief executive Professor Richard Condor said the efficiency of the GTA would be compromised if it had to answer to a higher body.
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Once again we have C&E trying to fix something that isn’t broken the GTA provide a fantastic service to this community and in my view with their on island training schemes have prevented the need for hundreds of employment licences to bring people in. Although I did not attend the IOD lunch I understand that the new C&E proposals had a very luke warm reception. Yet another off island report (Frontier Economics) making recommendations about something they have little local experience of. Leave the GTA alone and make sure it has the financial government support it needs to grow and it will continue to excel.
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Dave Jones
It needs to be remembered that the GTA in the early mid 2000s contributed to a increase in the cost of courses, from the lowest to highest levels.
The GTA all too often competed with the CFE in the provision of duplicate basic management and other similar level of courses. This was part of the GTA’s dash for expansion and employ of a significant number of administrative staffs.
This was fine for those who could afford, or had companies who could afford such prices, but not so good for those who relied on their own financial resources.
Whilst the GTA has acted as an agent for providers of degree and postgraduate courses the question is whether these course provide the transferable skills needed by Guernsey. This is an area the GFSC and Employment and commerce need to address.
Whilst doing this it needs to be remembered that a number of universities approached the CFE during the 1990s wanting them to provide and jointly teach degree and postgraduate courses, and not just administer the provision of courses by outside agents.
There are a number of us who can provide chapter and verse on the political games that took place in the provision of further and higher education.
So Dave (and Richard Digard)insiders would see this depth review of the GTA 9and CFE, as long overdue.
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Stephen we will see!
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