Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason his Department did not include the food sector in the Lifetime Skills Guarantee; and if he will reconsider its exclusion to help promote a sustainable future for British farming and enhance UK food security.

Through the Free Courses for Jobs offer, we are making courses available that offer good wage outcomes and address skills needs in the economy, empowering adults with the tools they need to secure a better job.

We have identified hundreds of courses that can give adults the skills they need in the labour market, and this includes agriculture and land-based engineering qualifications.

Many of the qualifications available support employers regardless of their sector, including those in the food and drink industry – for example, business, accountancy, and digital qualifications.

We are keeping the list of qualifications and the sector subject areas in scope under review and will consider requests for including courses that meet the published criteria.

Qualifications not included in this offer will still be eligible for Advanced Learner Loans. Advanced Learner Loans are income-contingent loans that provide extensive coverage of regulated qualifications at level 3 to level 6, helping to meet the upfront tuition fees. Applications in the 2019/20 academic year have been to study at nearly 450 training providers, and over 3000 qualifications are currently in scope.