MINUTES OF THE THIRTy-FOURTH meeting

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FORUM, 6 MARCH 2008, STORMONT HOTEL

 

Present:            See Annex 1.

 

Apologies:         Nigel Dodds MP MLA, Conor Murphy MP MLA, Mark Sweeney, Ian Crowe, John Gilliland, Seamus McAleavey, Stephen Kingon, Prof Peter Gregson, Aideen McGinley, Will Haire, Peter McNaney, Wilfred Mitchell, Patricia McKeown, Bob Barbour.

 

Action Points agreed at 13 December Plenary:  See Annex 2.

 

1           WELCOME, APOLOGIES AND MINUTES OF LAST MEETING

1.1          Members were welcomed to the 34th meeting of the Stormont Hotel.  Apologies were noted from the DETI and DRD Ministers and Members were advised that, in the absence of Minister Dodds, Stephen Quinn would chair the meeting.

1.2          The Chair welcomed new attendees, Katrina Godfrey, Esmond Birnie and David Sterling.

1.3          He also advised that the minutes of the plenary meeting on 13 December had been agreed by Members, by email, and posted to the EDF website.

2           MATTERS ARISING

Progress on December Action Points

2.1           The Chair referred Members to Paper 2 which outlined the progress made against action points from the plenary meeting on 13 December.   The paper was noted by Members.

 

Varney Review

2.2           The Chair advised Members that a ‘call for evidence’ has been requested by Sir David Varney to inform his 2nd Review and invited Mike Brennan (DFP) to provide an update.

 

2.3           Mike Brennan reported that the Varney exercise is ongoing and that a number of Executive Ministers have met Sir David Varney.  An Executive paper, has been provided to the Varney review team which outlines a number of perceived inaccuracies contained with the first report and also identifies key supply side issues, he advised Members that the second report is due in April.  He indicated that the initial feedback shows general optimism regarding the future growth of the Northern Ireland economy.

 

2.4           Mike informed Members that Sir David Varney has raised concerns over the effectiveness of some public policies.  In addition it has been suggested that the Executive can go further in giving effect to the priority accorded to growing the economy.  Mike advised Members that Sir David Varney has been asked to consider the necessary actions which the private sector might undertake to address specific weaknesses.

 

2.5           Frank Bryan advised Members that the Business Alliance had recently met with Varney and had stressed that it is well recognised within the business sector that the economy is now at the centre of the Programme for Government (PfG).   He welcomed Varney’s challenge to the public sector but noted that, even if the public sector effects all identified internal improvements, this will not be sufficient to deliver for the step change in economic performance which is required.  He reiterated the need for adjustments to key policy levers at the national level if we are to significantly alter the current trajectory of the Northern Ireland economy; regrettably Varney did not appear to either accept or address this concern.

 

2.6           Members stressed that the tone of the 2nd report was of particular importance given the proximity of the publication date to the May Investment Conference. 

 

Role and Agenda of EDF

 

2.7           The Chair reminded Members that an action point at the December meeting was to review the role and agenda of EDF.   He advised that a number of meetings were held in January/February with Sub-Group Chairs representing the business organisations.  He pointed out that this was a first step to engaging with EDF members on this matter and noted that further meetings would be taking place in the near future.  He proposed that the EDF Secretariat will develop a draft paper for circulation in advance of the June meeting, setting out initial proposals and seeking the views of members. The paper will be revised to reflect any requested amendments and will be tabled as an agenda item at the June meeting.

 

ACTION:        EDF Secretariat to prepare paper on the Role and Agenda of EDF and circulate to Members by end of April.

 

2.8           Bob Stronge advised members that the Advisory Council on Infrastructure Investment had recently finished its term of office.  He recommended that EDF should ensure Infrastructure and Investment expertise is represented within its membership following the review.

 

3           SKILLS – PRIVATE SECTOR VIEW:  ISSUES AND ACTIONS REQUIRED

3.1          Declan Billington, Chair of the Skills Sub-Group, provided a presentation outlining the business perspective on skills needs and skills gaps.  He also presented a number of recommendations (for both public and private sectors) deemed necessary to address these issues.

3.2          He commended the positive strategic and cross-departmental approach currently being implemented whilst noting that such strategies will take some time to embed and for the outcomes to be realised within the business sector.  He advised Members that it was his intention to stimulate further discussion on the delivery of key strategies.   His presentation focused on the need for short and medium term interventions to ensure Northern Ireland is in a position to avail of any opportunities which are likely to arise in the near future.

4           SKILLS STRATEGY

4.1          Catherine Bell and Victor Dukelow, DEL, provided a presentation which outlined the Skills Strategy / the priority skills areas, highlighted the extent of skills gaps and shortages in Northern Ireland, and gave an overview of the key skills delivery bodies and their role/responsibilities in delivering the strategy.   In addition, information was provided about the appointment of a person, through public appointment, to represent Northern Ireland on the UK Employment and Skills Commission.  The person appointed also will provide advice to the Minister for Employment and Learning about employment and skills issues and monitor the implementation of the Skills Strategy.  He/she will be supported by a reformed Skills Expert Group which will become an Employment and Skills Advisory Body.  At local level six Workforce Development Forums of employers have been established, they are supported by the further education colleges.  The purpose is to identify skill needs in the area and for the colleges to respond to addressing these needs.  Members were provided with examples of successful interventions at the local levels e.g. Northern Region Workforce Development Forum.

4.2          Members were advised that a higher percentage of the Northern Ireland workforce have no or low qualifications compared to other UK regions.  However, it was noted that research evidence indicates that Northern Ireland reports fewer skills shortages than other UK regions.  Members were advised that a higher demand for skilled labour will be essential to meeting the ambitious PfG goals.

5           CAREERS STRATEGY

5.1          Katrina Godfrey, DE provided an update on the recent consultation exercise on the draft Careers Strategy and an outline of new proposals/initiatives arising.

5.2          She agreed with Declan Billington’s point on the time lag before strategies produce results. However, she noted the valuable work which has been undertaken to date and the effective public initiatives currently being implemented citing examples of valuable and effective careers advice.  She also noted the effective partnerships across departments, with the business sector and with local education providers.

5.3          She informed Members that the Revised Curriculum will be fully in place across all year groups by 2010 and that the Education Minister’s desire was to see young people making informed choices about pathways at age 14, supported by an Entitlement Framework that ensured access to a broad range of courses, both general and applied, and by effective careers education, information, advice and guidance (CEIAG).  The CEIAG strategy was therefore vital for the success of both areas.  She also updated Members on work to explore a model in place in Hampshire which linked decisions on course pathways to careers advice and with Business in the Community. Katrina drew members attention to the importance which DE attached to promoting the choice of STEM subjects noting that an Action Plan aimed at promoting STEM subjects will be developed and more schools will be designated “specialist school” status for these subjects.

Discussion

 

5.4          Minister Empey opened the discussion by thanking the presenters for their comprehensive updates and also circulating the DEL Statement on Skills in Northern Ireland to members.  He suggested that DEL have the right policies in place and noted that the Departments focus is now on ensuring timely delivery of key strategies/actions.  He noted the need to ensure that training opportunities are provided to enable people to re-train and gain qualifications in those areas where there is a specific shortage of skilled labour. However, he observed that the cost of providing conversion courses etc is high, budgets are limited and, therefore, caution is required to ensure there is no double spend on training.  He also suggested that there will be risks involved in any attempt to predict future skills needs and in providing appropriate training, given that such opportunities might not materialise. He noted that it would be unhelpful to focus too heavily on the risk associated with such an approach at the expense of enabling NI to avail of important FDI and other opportunities requiring skilled workers.

5.5          Minister Empey stated that changing skills needs will be a feature of the economic landscape now and in the future and agreed that there is considerable work to be done to ensure that NI has an appropriately skilled workforce.  He noted the number of underemployed and economically inactive people in Northern Ireland and described the programmes in place e.g. Pathways to Work, to address this problem.  He highlighted the work which the Department of Work and Pensions in London is undertaking in this area and that lessons might be learned from this approach.

5.6          The ‘brain drain’ was also discussed and measures to redress this were outlined e.g. DEL Minister supported by Invest NI to lead road shows in GB to attract talent back to NI. It was noted that such measures will only be successful if there are high quality jobs available in NI.  Business community involvement was deemed essential in addressing this problem.  Commitment to the North Carolina model for regional economic development (which is based on a collaborative approach across key agencies) was expressed.  However, it was noted that full cooperation from all stakeholders will be required from the outset if this kind of model is to work in NI.

5.7          Bro McFerran commended the work of the government departments but noted that, had such work commenced five years ago, NI would not have lost many of the previous opportunities.  He recommended that the focus should now be on upskilling the workforce and attracting higher value jobs.  Jim McCusker agreed with the need for upskilling, but asked Members if lessons have been learned from the past and whether the private sector is adequately dealing with retaining skilled staff particularly in the hospitality sector.  Bro stressed the need to ensure that robust data is used when forecasting the employment requirements of the future.  Effective marketing of alternative careers (compare medicine, etc. where there are no shortage of applicants) was also proposed, with a particular emphasis placed on the opportunities arising in the IT field.    He also called for a reduction of fees for students undertaking STEM subjects and put forward the need for research to understand the reasons behind diaspora, in particular, from the Protestant community, choosing to study in other regions of the UK.

5.8          Minister Empey advised that DEL have conducted work looking at why students choose to study elsewhere and reports should be available soon.  He also advised that the MaSN cap on university places is a financial control mechanism and that it will be reviewed next year; however, he reminded Members of the considerable financial implications of abolishing university fees noting that 10% of the DEL budget would be required to fund the provision of free university education.  Minister Empey indicated that additional funding for PhD studentships will be skewed in favour of subjects important to NI Economy and that DEL will engage with both universities to monitor uptake on such courses.

5.9          Richard Barnett noted that the labour market was more effective than the initial presentation had suggested and advised members that there had not been any significant decline in uptake for STEM subjects in the University of Ulster in recent years.  He remarked upon the omission of the construction industry in the initial presentation and proposed this was a strong sector promoting indigenous growth.

5.10      Trevor Neilands outlined that interaction between the public sector and industry will be essential to implementing short and medium term interventions aimed at addressing skills gaps.  In relation to medium term interventions e.g. adult apprenticeships, conversion courses, he drew attention to resource commitments required from all stakeholders.  He indicated that there is a need to address weakness in both the supply and the demand side, suggesting collaboration is required to develop local solutions which can then be brought to DEL for support.  He advocated more publicity for exemplars of such interventions to create momentum.

5.11      Tracy Meharg provided Members with an update on the ICT Skills Action Plan, explaining that Invest NI has been working closely with colleagues in DEL's Skills Development Unit to develop, agree and implement a joint, short-term ICT Action Plan aimed at addressing the immediate needs of the ICT industry in Northern Ireland.   She advised that the Action Plan is currently being considered by the Invest NI Board.  She emphasised the need for improved marketing of relevant courses and employer involvement.   Catherine Bell reinforced the need for both the public and private sectors to work closely together on this matter.  She also noted that some actions have already been implemented e.g. the Software Professional Conversion Courses in FE; the introduction of a joint MSc course in universities, E Skills (the Sector Skills Council for ICT) are working with Momentum (the Trade Association representing Northern Ireland's ICT industry) to support the marketing of these courses.  She also pointed out the linkages between work underway and the MATRIX work.

5.12      Bob Stronge remarked that a large proportion of responses to the consultation exercise on the Draft Careers Strategy were from adults.  He reiterated the need to address the economically inactive issue whilst noting that there is a need to consider how such people could be better supported.  He referred to programmes for training those on benefits, suggesting this could lead some to the ‘black economy’.  He also reminded Members of the role the voluntary sector (25,000 people) can play in supporting the economically inactive.

5.13      The Chair noted that the recommendations in the first presentation were predominantly addressed to the public sector and enquired if this reflected the business sector view as to how the Skills issue should be addressed.  Declan Billington advised that the purpose of the presentation was to start a debate and encourage prompt action.  He recognised that there is a very important role for business and confirmed that he has encouraged CBI Members to get involved at schools, FE and HE level.  He emphasised that the significant global FDI market provides important opportunities for NI if there is a steady supply of appropriately skilled labour.  It was agreed that DETI, DEL, DE and Invest NI would review the recommendations suggested in the first presentation and would respond via the Secretariat.

ACTION:    DETI/DEL/DE/Invest NI to review the recommendations suggested in the first presentation and provide a response to the EDF Secretariat by 18 April.

ACTION:    EDF Secretariat to collate responses and prepare a paper for circulation to Members by end April.

6           VISION SUB-GROUPS

6.1          Members noted Papers 7, 8, 9 and 10, which provided an overview of the current work of each Vision Sub-Group and also outlined each Sub-Group’s plans for the next six to nine months.

7           ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Draft DEL Corporate Plan

7.1          Minister Empey provided Members with an update on the consultation on the draft DEL Corporate Plan, which closes on the 7 March.   He acknowledged some very positive comments had been received and thanked Members for their contributions.

7.2          The Chair advised that the consultation process for the DETI Corporate Plan was also underway and welcomed input.   He also informed Members that the Plan had been refined following ETI Committee comments.

Future of EDF Papers- Electronic Format

7.3          Graeme Hutchinson advised Members that EDF papers will issue in electronic format only, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Press Release

7.4          Members agreed that given the nature and focus of the meeting there was no requirement to issue a Press Release.

Venue

7.5          The Chair proposed the Stormont Hotel as the venue for future EDF meetings.  Members generally indicated that they were content with this proposal.  Catherine Bell reminded Members that college and universities also offer good facilities.

ACTION:    EDF Secretariat to engage with DEL on feasibility of using college or university facilities.

Date of Next Meeting

ACTION:    EDF Secretariat to contact Members to confirm 12 June 2008 as the date for the next meeting.

 

ANNEX 1

 

EDF MEETING – 6 March 2008:  ATTENDEES

 

Sir Reg Empey

Minister DEL

Esmond Birnie

DEL

Frank Bryan

IoD

Declan Billington

CBI

Bro McFerran

Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce

Francis McCandless

NICVA

Jim McCusker

NIC/ICTU

Peter Bunting

NIC/ICTU

Prof Gerry McCormac

Higher Education – QUB

Prof Richard Barnett

Higher Education - UU

Trevor Neilands

Further Education

Bob Stronge

NICVA

Tracy Meharg

Invest NI

 

 

Officials

 

Stephen Quinn

DETI

David Sterling

DETI

Catherine Bell

DEL

Victor Dukelow

DEL

Katrina Godfrey

DE

Jim McConnell

DE

Michael Brennan

DFP

Graeme Hutchinson

DETI

Anne Tohill

DETI

Yvonne Curran

DETI

 

ANNEX 2

ACTION POINTS AGREED AT 6 MARCH 2008 PLENARY   

 

ISSUE

ACTIONS ARISING

LEAD RESPONSIBILITY

TIMESCALE

Role and Agenda of EDF

EDF Secretariat to prepare paper on the Role and Agenda of EDF and circulate to Members by end of April.

EDF Secretariat

By end of April

Response to Recommendations in the ‘Skills- The Business View’ presentation

DETI/DEL/DE/Invest NI to review the recommendations suggested in the first presentation and provide response to the EDF Secretariat by 18 April.

DETI

DEL

DE

Invest NI

By 18 April

Recommendations in the ‘Skills- The Business View’ presentation

EDF Secretariat to collate responses and prepare a paper for circulation to Members by end of April.

EDF Secretariat

By end of April

EDF Venue

EDF Secretariat to engage with DEL on feasibility of using college or university facilities.

EDF Secretariat

By end of March

Date of next meeting

EDF Secretariat to contact Members to confirm 12 June 2008 as the date for the next meeting.

EDF Secretariat

By end of March