However, EEF expressed concern that there were no new policy announcements and expressed concern that government’s encouraging words in so many areas of education and skills were taking time to see firm action.
Commenting, EEF Chairman, Martin Temple, said:
"This is a welcome shift away from targets for targets sake, towards producing highly qualified people who also carry the skills to make them employable. As in so many other areas of policy we now need to see encouraging words turned into firm delivery.
"The need for an increase in the number of people with high level skills is acute in sectors such as engineering and manufacturing which are suffering from a shortage of people with Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects. Simply sending more people through higher education is not enough if they do not have the skills that employers need.
"Employers see strong skills in communication, teamwork and business acumen as key attributes. As such, EEF supports the greater focus on employability and the responsibility of Universities to deliver this. This will be vital if Universities are to help deliver on the government’s innovation and enterprise agendas which business and industry strongly supports."
ENDS