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10.44 am
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr. Raymond S. Robertson): I join other hon. Members in congratulating the hon. Member for Falkirk, West (Mr. Canavan) on securing the debate. It has been a good debate, and, although I may not have agreed with everything--indeed, anything--said by Opposition Members, I do not doubt their sincerity for a moment. That applies both to the specific constituency cases cited by the hon. Members for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Mr. McKelvey) and for Livingston (Mr. Cook) and to the more general points that were made.
Mr. Canavan: Did I hear the Minister say that he did not agree with anything that had been said by Opposition Members?
Mr. Robertson: I did not agree with everything, and perhaps with anything, but the hon. Gentleman may agree with some of what I say. As I have said, I do not doubt Opposition Members' sincerity, although part of what was said by the hon. Member for Monklands, East (Mrs. Liddell) seemed unnecessarily strident.
The debate is important because of the vital role that our colleges play in meeting the skills needs of the Scottish economy. I hope that the hon. Member for Falkirk, West read the article in yesterday's edition of The Herald, which said that substantial growth in the uptake of Scottish vocational qualifications was being
stimulated throughout Scotland by the further education sector. That flies in the face of one of the central points of the hon. Gentleman's speech.
No one disputes the fact that we need a highly competitive and skilled work force in an increasingly competitive global economy. The role of colleges, and their success--for I believe they are successful--is not mentioned often or loudly enough. Today's wide-ranging debate has highlighted some of those successes, but, unfortunately, it has also misrepresented the dynamism of Scotland's FE sector to a great extent. I welcome the opportunity to make clear the Government's support for the colleges, and to describe what we have done and will do in the future.
I am personally committed to that, having visited nine colleges in virtually as many months. I did that because I wanted to see at first hand what they were doing and how they were doing it. I was impressed by the enthusiasm and commitment of the management, staff and students whom I met, and I pay tribute to them.
In the period since April 1993--which, after all, was only just over three years ago--colleges have built on earlier strengths and, through that liberating process, have achieved some remarkable advances. Incorporation has assisted college responsiveness by devolving decision making to local level, and has led colleges to look critically at their structures and systems to ensure that they are appropriate to a dynamic environment.
The hon. Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun asked why a college in his constituency had received a nil capital allocation for this year. Capital works in our colleges are increasingly being funded successfully from the private finance initiative. What the hon. Gentleman did not mention was that Kilmarnock college had received 5.12 per cent. additional funding this year, and last year had received a capital grant of more than £500,000. I was concerned by much of what the hon. Gentleman said, however, and I shall be happy for my officials to meet representatives of the college as a matter of urgency to see whether the issues that he raised can be explored further.
The hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) mentioned the relocation of West Lothian college from Bathgate to Livingston. The college has not yet assessed the financial and other implications of the option to relocate the entire college. In reaching its conclusions, it will have regard to the best interests of education and training in the West Lothian area as a whole, and we shall study those conclusions carefully.
The hon. Gentleman asked five specific questions. If he does not mind, I shall reply to them fully in writing.
Mr. Dalyell:
Obviously such a reply is much better than an immediate response, but will the Minister assure me that the officials will sit down with all concerned and discuss the position before any final decisions are made?
Mr. Robertson:
I do not hesitate to give the hon. Gentleman that assurance.
As the hon. Member for Monklands, East said, colleges are also involving employers, as major stakeholders, in what they do. That involvement takes place at many levels: on the board of management to ensure strategic vision, with the local enterprise company to collaborate in the local achievement of education and training targets and with individual
employers to meet their specific needs. What characterises the 220,000 students who attend colleges is the differences between them, and that is the strength of those colleges. About a third of college activities are undertaken by part-time students, with 5 per cent. of students studying by open or flexible learning. In recent years, much of the growth in Scottish higher education has occurred in colleges.
The hon. Member for Glasgow, Maryhill (Mrs. Fyfe) spoke of staff numbers being in decline. That is not true. In October 1992, there were 6,850 teaching staff, but since incorporation the number has risen, to just under 7,000 in 1994-95. The increases in the volume of student activity in 1994-95 over the previous year were as follows: art and design, up 14 per cent.; social studies, languages and communication, up 9 per cent.; and special needs programmes, up 17 per cent.
Mrs. Fyfe:
If the Minister cannot answer my question now, perhaps he will write to me, but what is the student to staff ratio now compared with five or 10 years ago?
Mr. Robertson:
The hon. Lady has asked a number of specific questions and I shall reply in writing.
Mr. Wallace:
The Minister said that staff numbers have increased. Are his figures for full-time equivalent staff?
Mrs. Fyfe:
Will the Minister give a written answer on how many of those staff are in permanent posts and how many are on short-term contracts?
Mr. Robertson:
I shall write to the hon. Lady. If she wants me to write to her again, perhaps she will write to me and we may make some progress.
We funded growth, but, following rapid expansion, it has proved necessary to hold full-time numbers to their current record levels, although colleges are being encouraged to continue to expand the number of students on part-time higher education courses.
Such provision is not capped. Just under half of all students are over 25, reflecting the range of innovative programmes on offer and the colleges' commitment to lifelong learning. Increasingly, colleges provide training for employers on their premises, often to Scottish vocational qualification standards. I want to encourage these trends, with colleges increasing student participation further, particularly by introducing more part-time provision and open and flexible learning opportunities in partnership with employers.
The goal of increasing student participation has been one of our major objectives since incorporation, and we are meeting the objective. In the academic year 1994-95, student activity increased by 6 per cent. Colleges will continue to increase activity this academic year and in future. That growth is being stimulated by the funding of colleges and by the way in which funds are distributed.
Listening to some hon. Members, one would think that colleges do not have the resources to fund that expansion. Since incorporation in April 1993, recurrent funding for
further education has increased by 14 per cent. In each year, the recurrent funding made available to colleges has increased. In 1996-97, £233 million will be available. That has been possible despite the need to maintain downward pressure on public expenditure.
The hon. Member for Monklands, East, in a wide-ranging and well-crafted speech, said that the Government were underfunding further education. I assume that she missed out the page in her speech that stated by how much we are doing so and how quickly and how much an incoming Labour Government would put into Scottish higher education. I give her the chance to rectify her mistake, which she made when she turned over two pages in her speech instead of one.
Mrs. Liddell:
I was aware that a number of colleagues had made the point and I did not wish to be unnecessarily repetitive. However, £45 million less is available to colleges than employers say they need simply to maintain 1995 service levels.
Mr. Robertson:
No, it was not that page but the one that states how much a Labour Government would invest in their first year in office.
Mrs. Liddell:
I recognise that the Minister is practising for being in opposition, questioning the next Government. We will adequately fund Scottish further education. My hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline, East (Mr. Brown) has published wide-ranging proposals that will ensure that our young people get the skills and training that the Government's funding of further education is limiting.
Mr. Robertson:
I hope that all those from the colleges who are watching the debate and those who will read it later heard the hon. Lady refuse to give any commitment on how much an incoming Labour Government--that will not happen--will spend.
The challenge for now and for the future is to maintain and improve standards while increasing efficiency. We have set the colleges challenging targets, delivering efficiency savings of 4 per cent. each year. I am pleased to say that the colleges are achieving that, and there is no reason why they cannot continue to do so.
At the time of incorporation, the costs of providing further education varied enormously throughout Scotland. In some colleges, it cost about twice as much to teach comparable subjects. Colleges were not funded coherently or systematically. We have therefore gradually phased in a newer and fairer approach to allocating funds, based on student activity achieved by colleges. This aims to ensure that a reasonable balance is struck between resources that colleges receive from the taxpayer and the need to encourage them to deliver value-for-money increases in student participation and high standards, which they are achieving.
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