Brown underlines need to ‘skill up’

Prime Minister Gordon Brown repeated the call last week for UK businesses to ‘skill up’ to meet the global challenges of the future, which for the UK involves a policy of free trade.

Speaking at the Institute of Directors’ annual convention, he told senior business and design figures, ‘We are moving to a risk-based approach’, shunning the heavily regulated systems favoured by the US.

He spoke of ‘skills [giving] people the chance to move forward’ and said the Government is looking to promote life-long learning and invest in new approaches to formal education and expanding apprenticeships.

As Chancellor of the Exchequer, Brown commissioned the Cox Review from then Design Council chairman Sir George Cox. One of its recommendations was the development of new skills in the creative industries, resulting in the formation of the UK Design Skills Alliance (DW 1 May).