Lords debates bill on Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education

An image representing technical and skills training.

Members of the House of Lords will debate the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill at second reading on Tuesday 22 October.

The aim of this government bill is to abolish the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) and transfer its statutory functions to the Secretary of State for Education, who in practice will defer these duties to the newly established Skills England.

Debate on the draft law

During second reading, members will discuss the main issues in the bill and highlight any areas of concern where they believe amendments (changes) may be needed.

Members speaking

Baroness Smith of Malvern (Labour), Minister for Skills in the Department for Education, will open the debate and respond on behalf of the government.

Contributing members are expected to include:

Lord Blunkett (Labour), former Education Secretary and member of the Policy Exchange's advisory board on apprenticeship reform
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Conservative), former director and chief operating officer of the New Schools Network
Baroness McGregor-Smith (Non-affiliated), chair of the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education
Lord Storey (Liberal Democrats), patron of education, skills and social mobility charity, Career Connect.