Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the amount that the retail sector has (a) paid into the apprenticeship levy and (b) used to fund apprenticeships since 2017, and if he will make a statement.

The apprenticeship levy is collected from employers by HM Revenue and Customs.

The Education and Skills Funding Agency does not require levy-paying employers to register an industry sector when registering an apprenticeship service account and is therefore unable to supply the information on apprenticeships spending by the retail sector since 2017.