Joyce Steven: Industry Training and Apprenticeships Amendment Bill — First ReadingText is subject to correctionJoyce Steven: Industry Training and Apprenticeships Amendment Bill — First Reading[Sitting date: 05 November 2013. Volume:694;Page:14363. Text is subject to correction.]Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister for Tertiary Education Skills and Employment): I moveThat the Industry Training and Apprenticeships Amendment Billbe now read a first time. I nominate the Education and Science Committee to consider the bill. At the appropriate time I intend to move that the bill be reported to the House by 10 March 2014. This bill is a vital part of the Government’s comprehensive reforms to industry training to achieve better performance for employers for trainees and apprentices and also for taxpayers.To explain the purpose of the bill it is necessary to provide a bit of context. In the decade up to 2010 Government funding for industry training organisations and industry training almost trebled. Unfortunately those funding increases were not matched with sufficient accountability for taxpayers’ money. Although there was an increase in recorded industry training participation it did not in fact represent value for money. Qualification completions and credit attainment by trainees during this period were very low. In fact under the previous Government up to 100000 people a year who were listed as being in industry training were in fact phantom trainees who achieved no credits and in a limited number of cases were no longer alive. This situation—Grant Robertson: How much? How much is “up to”?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: About 100000 a year.Grant Robertson: No you said “up to”. What’s the number?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: If you want me to count—you do not want the answer to that question. This situation was obviously unsustainable. The Government took quick and decisive action. Our operational changes led to significant improvements in both qualification and credit attainment which is ongoing. It has freed up funding for reinvestment in the system.The next step was to take a more fundamental look at the policy settings of the industry training system and we initiated a comprehensive policy review to assess whether the current model was fit for purpose. The review was informed by extensive consultation with the industry training sector and industries and it found that there was significant room for improvement particularly in the quality of service provided to both employers and trainees.In January this year we announced a further package of policy changes to industry training. The changes are all about increasing the opportunities for in-work training for New Zealanders by expanding and improving our apprenticeship system and reinvesting some of the money saved through our operational changes. We have announced the establishment of the New Zealand Apprenticeships scheme. These combine Modern Apprenticeships and other apprenticeship-type training into a premier vocational qualification. New Zealand Apprenticeships will provide the same level of support and the same level of subsidy for all apprentices regardless of their age. We have also boosted the educational content of apprenticeships by requiring all apprenticeship programmes to be at least 120 credits and to result in a level 4 qualification.We have increased the funding for apprenticeships. This increased funding will allow industry training organisations to invest in the quality of education for apprentices. It will enable industry training organisations to lower fees for employers and encourage growth in the uptake of apprenticeships. The apprenticeship reboot has been under way since March of this year. The first 10000 new apprentices enrolled since March have been eligible for a grant of $1000 towards their tools and off-job costs or $2000 if they are in priority trades with the same amount paid to their employer.I announced a couple of weeks ago that the reboot scheme has already signed up 8000 new apprentices in only 7 months. It has resulted in a 67 percent increase in people commencing apprenticeships compared with the same period last year. Two-thirds of all apprentices who have signed up have been in the designated priority trades such as construction engineering infrastructure and electro-technology. The Industry Training and Apprenticeships Amendment Bill will support these initiatives by enablingthe establishment of a comprehensive New Zealand apprenticeship system refocusing the role of industry training organisations on standard-setting and arranging training and strengthening quality assurance of the industry training sector.The first objective of the bill is to enable the establishment of comprehensive New Zealand apprenticeships that provide the same level of support to all apprentices regardless of their age. The bill repeals the Modern Apprenticeship Training Act 2000 and amends the Industry Training Act 1992 so that legislation relating to industry training and apprenticeships is located in one modern piece of legislation. The bill defines “apprenticeship training” and removes the existing age restrictions on apprenticeship training. It defines the functions of the Tertiary Education Commission and prescribes the duties and responsibilities of organisations that arrange apprenticeship training.The bill also allows the responsible Minister to issue a code of practice for apprenticeship training and to set guidelines for organisations employers and apprentices. Industry training organisations and other organisations that arrange apprenticeship training will have a statutory responsibility for ensuring that apprentices receive appropriate pastoral care and support. This will mean that the organisation responsible for an apprentice’s training will also be responsible for their pastoral care.The second objective of the bill is to focus industry training organisations on two core responsibilities: setting skill standards for their industries and arranging training. The bill removes the industry training organisations’ statutory skills leadership function which requires them to identify current and future skill needs for their whole industry. Removing this role will encourage industry training organisations to focus on arranging training for employees which businesses have told us is the service that is of most value to them.I want to be clear that removing their statutory skills leadership requirement does not prevent them in any way from undertaking skills leadership. Rather it will incentivise other organisations such as industry associations to take a greater role in skills leadership alongside industry training organisations. This will improve links between the Government and industry in determining present and future skill needs. The bill also prevents industry training organisations from owning registered private training establishments. This removes the possibility of industry training organisations directing trainees towards institutions in which they have a financial interest.The third objective of the bill is to strengthen the quality assurance framework for industry training organisations. At present the Industry Training Act 1992 does not require an organisation to satisfy any particular quality assurance standards in order for it to be recognised as an industry training organisation. The bill addresses this by giving the New Zealand Qualifications Authority power to prescribe quality assurance requirements for industry training organisations.The bill also strengthens the quality assurance framework by giving the New Zealand Qualifications Authority power to impose a graduated regime of sanctions in order to address poor performance by an industry training organisation. The authority will be able to issue quality assurance improvement notices to industry training organisations to address poor practice outside the scope of prescribed quality assurance requirements and to issue compliance notices to an industry training organisation that does not meet quality assurance requirements or fails to respond to a quality improvement notice. The responsible Minister will then be able to impose conditions on an industry training organisation’s recognition if it has not complied with these initial sanctions.The Industry Training and Apprenticeships Amendment Bill is a vital part of the Government’s revitalisation of industry training to get the best results for employers and for trainees. It completes the implementation of the industry training review. It willboost system performance for all parties and build greater links between the Government the industry training sector and the industries that employ the trainees. I commend this bill to the House.