• Over 500,000 jobseekers have been supported to find work through their jobcentre as government meets its target, helping to grow the economy
• Benefit claimants moved into work at a record rate in April 2022 as part of the “Way to Work” drive
• Hundreds of employers across the UK benefit, saving money on recruitment costs and filling vacancies fast

Launched in January, ministers set the target of supporting 500,000 jobseekers through the jobcentre and into employment by the end of June. This coincided with the need to fill a record number of job vacancies as the economy rebounded after the pandemic.

Unemployment now stands at an almost 50 year low with 627,000 more people in payroll employment compared to pre-pandemic levels.

The nation’s attitudes have been transformed, with many jobseekers taking on roles in new sectors and employers recruiting through jobcentres for the first time. To keep up momentum, the department will continue to bring jobseekers face to face with employers, helping more people find work and earn a wage.

Prime Minister, Boris Johnson said:

In less than six months we’ve helped half a million people – who have so far been struggling to find employment – into work. This is a massive success, especially in the context of some of the global economic pressures we’ve been facing.

Helping people find the security of a stable income, through a job they can take pride in, is one of the best ways for people to support their families during these challenging times.

That’s why we’re stepping up targeted support measures to ensure everyone can find a job that’s right for them, develop their skills and climb up the career ladder.

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Thérèse Coffey said:

When people needed jobs and the economy needed workers, we stepped up our efforts to connect jobseekers with employers and have delivered on our target to get 500,000 more people into work in less than six months.

Our ABC approach to help people get Any job first, a Better job next and into a Career is off to a flying start. With people in jobs, we can move to the next stage – helping them progress in-work and boost their earnings.

Minister for Employment, Mims Davies MP said:

After this huge success, we’re determined to get everyone, at any age or career stage, the support they need to get back into work.

We’re stepping up our targeted support for older workers, those living with health conditions and for people who have been out of work for more than 12 months, ensuring everyone can find a job that’s right for them, earn a wage and have the opportunity to progress.

As part of “Way to Work”, rules for job-ready claimants were changed, requiring them to broaden their job search after one month to include sectors new to them.

The Department for Work and Pensions also worked with employers to short-circuit their recruitment practices, getting hiring managers and jobseekers in front of each other in jobcentres across the UK, leading to an ‘on the spot’ hiring approach, getting people earning quicker, and reducing hiring costs for employers.

Following the success of the jobs drive, ministers have renewed a focus on supporting in-work progression for workers across the country through the national network of jobcentres.

Having picked up the roles that the economy needed, people are now being supported by their jobcentre to progress, helping them to earn more money, get more hours, and use their experience as a springboard for their career.

In addition, the Department for Work and Pensions is focused on supporting the long-term unemployed, older workers and those with health conditions to find work, helping the UK maximise employment and supporting economic growth.

Midlife MOT’s will help older workers take stock of their skills and finances, and take advantage of those years in work over 50, which we know can often be the most interesting and lucrative.

In addition, ministers have committed to spending £1.3 billion to support people with disability and health challenges into work, building on the expansion of Disability Employment Advisers.

And because returning to work can be more difficult after an extended period of unemployment, the government’s Restart Scheme will give jobseekers a year of intensive support to help get them back on the job ladder, and is already supporting a quarter of a million back into work.

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The UK is launching a new drive to demolish bureaucratic barriers to international trade, opening up markets worth tens of billions for businesses across the UK, the International Trade Secretary will say today (Thursday 30 June).

Anne-Marie Trevelyan has drawn up a hit list of around 100 priority issues around the world currently blocking British trade, which are being targeted for resolution by teams of specialists in her department.

These range from restrictions on UK-qualified lawyers from operating in Japan, to rules that delay British medical devices from entering South Africa, to restrictions on meat exports to countries in Asia.

The work will allow our world-leading products and services to reach hundreds of millions of new customers globally, benefitting all regions of the UK, Secretary Trevelyan will tell the British Chambers of Commerce’s annual conference.

International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said:

Every week we remove trade barriers somewhere around the world, helping more and more businesses all over the country.

We know that businesses who export pay higher wages and are more productive than businesses who do not, but too often, complex trade rules and practical obstacles prevent them selling overseas.

This bonfire of the barriers will grow our economy by allowing our brilliant businesses to satisfy the enormous global appetite for their goods and services.

Unlocking new markets and global customers means more opportunities for UK firms to grow their businesses and support local jobs. That is why we are working hard on getting rid of barriers, including:

• Opening the Chinese market for UK lamb for the first time, unlocking markets worth £1.5bn which would help businesses such as Pilgrims Lamb UK.
• South Korea removing restrictions on UK beef for the first time, opening up markets worth £2.5bn – this is expected to be resolved within the next five years and could benefit businesses such as Northern Ireland based Foyle Food Group.
• Removing delays in registering new medicines and medical devices in South Africa helping to increase the UK’s exports as well as improving healthcare availability and quality.

The UK gained greater freedom to remove trade barriers, along with the ability to negotiate its own Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), when it left the European Union. FTAs are securing new and substantial opportunities for UK businesses, and the work goes hand in hand with tackling trade barriers facing our firms today.

The department has supported the resolution of around 400 barriers, across more than 70 countries, in the last two years.

These included:

• Working with Chinese authorities to remove animal testing requirements for many beauty products in China, opening up a market worth £500m and helping brands such as Unilever’s cruelty-free REN brand to import into China for the first time.
• Overcoming bureaucratic issues to allow the export of pet supplements to India worth £1.4m to Lancashire-based VetPlus over five years.
• A simplified process for certifying UK cosmetics to Indonesia.
• Unblocking difficult processes in Mongolia which prevented the export of UK poultry and fish, opening up a market worth £10m, helping Moy Park, a poultry exporter, to supply chicken to KFC Mongolia.

DIT has local offices in every region of the UK, and so when a business hits a barrier to trade, we can step in to help them.

Dr Carl Westmoreland, from Unilever’s Safety and Environmental Assurance Centre, said:

Unilever has been partnering with the Chinese authorities, government laboratories and leading academics since 2011 to build non-animal safety science capability. The regulatory change in China was a significant step forward for cruelty-free cosmetics in the country, and we commend the Department for International Trade for its role in driving forward this important opportunity for cruelty-free brands.

Anthony Sewart, VetPlus Regional Manager, Eastern Europe, the Middle East & Africa, said:

Being able to meet the different compliance requirements across the markets we operate in is extremely important to ensure the availability of our products for vets and pet owners.

Recently, we ran into a challenge in exporting our products to India and the support from the DIT was fantastic. They were able to put us in touch with the right people to help us liaise with the Indian authorities and facilitate the appropriate documentation to enable us to re-start the export of our products to India.

Background

• The Digital Market Access Service (DMAS) is the internal government database of trade barriers facing UK businesses that enables closer collaboration across government in Whitehall and at overseas Posts to analyse and progress action to try and resolve them where feasible.
• DMAS is not a comprehensive repository of all market access issues facing UK exporters, and reporting rates vary widely across countries and regions. As such, aggregate figures should be interpreted as an indicative estimate based on a selective sample.
• Full publication of the “hit list” of barriers is not possible due to commercial sensitivities, and the likelihood that publicising specific UK asks will impede our negotiations with host Governments. These barriers have been identified as offering significant economic value to UK businesses and strong alignment with the UK’s broader strategic priorities, such as Levelling Up the United Kingdom and tackling climate change at home and abroad.
• Barriers have been identified from each of DIT’s nine HM Trade Commissioner-led regions around the world, with a particular focus (around half) in the Indo-Pacific region, in line with the Government’s Integrated Review. All major economic sectors are represented, with a particular emphasis on tackling barriers in the Agri, Food and Drink; Financial & Professional Services; and Healthcare & Lifesciences sectors.
• Figures on the number of barriers resolved have been published in the Official Statistics series: Market Access barrier statistics. The latest outturns are due to be published at 09:30 on 30/06.
• Figures on the value of UK exports and the value of partner country imports are based on existing published UK and International Statistic series drawn from ONS and UN Comtrade datasets using the latest available data. Further details on methodology for these are available in the DIT statistical publication.
• Opening up markets to sell £4bn worth of beef in South Korea and lamb in China is not the total size of the import market but is based on South Korea and China’s import of £4bn of lamb and beef combined from the world.
• Aggregate figures on the value of export opportunities represented by a selection of barriers are based on DIT analysis of specific market access barriers using the methodologies set out in the DIT statistical publication (link to Nov 21). To calculate the aggregate figures, the mid-point for each valuation range is added to provide a central estimate. Further details on the methodology for the aggregate valuation figures are published in a DIT analytical working paper.
• This report contains analysis illustrating the potential value of export opportunities associated with the removal of a selection of market access barriers. This analysis draws upon the methodological approaches developed in DIT to produce indicative estimates of the value associated with a barrier to inform decision making[ such as which barriers should be prioritised for government action. These methodological approaches were set out in more detail in the publication: Market Access barrier statistics: Financial year 2020 to 2021.

The UK has announced an increased contribution to NATO as the Prime Minister and Defence Secretary attend the NATO summit in Madrid.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace MP said:

We have always been clear that our strength and security comes from our alliances, and NATO is at the heart of that.

The New Force Model and our presence in Estonia will ensure that the Alliance is able to respond at pace, helping to determine stability across Europe in the decades to come.

RAF Typhoon and F-35B Lightning fighter jets, Royal Navy vessels including Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers, and brigade-sized land forces will all be made available to NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) as part of the New Force Model.

NATO has introduced the New Force Model in support of Leaders’ decision to modernise and strengthen the NATO Force Structure for the future. Allies will declare capabilities, equipment and forces available to support SACEUR, ensuring they are in the right place at the right time. This will allow the Alliance’s military command to plan for emerging threats, safe in the knowledge that these assets will be available to take part in the Alliance’s response.

The UK will also contribute to the new Allied Reaction Force: an agile, multi-domain and combat-effective force ready to deploy at very high readiness and to respond to a range of crises.

It comes as the Alliance has agreed a new posture of stronger forward defences to reflect the radically changed security context since Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the UK increased its presence in Estonia to include the temporary deployment of a second battlegroup, doubling the total number of deployed personnel to over 1,600. The lethality of these deployments will be enhanced with advanced capabilities including helicopters and artillery systems. Meanwhile, the UK’s existing HQ in Tallinn will be expanded. Led by a Brigadier, it will support the rapid deployment of high readiness forces at the brigade level.

The UK will also support Estonia with training and logistics, the development of its first divisional-level HQ, as well as developing new ways of fighting through their joint hosting of the Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic European HQ, and supporting innovative dual use start-ups through the NATO Innovation Fund.

In addition to increasing its deployments to Estonia, since the Russian invasion the UK has also deployed hundreds of troops to Poland and sent more aircraft to conduct air policing in Romania. Meanwhile, HMS Prince of Wales has led the Alliance’s Maritime High Readiness Force since January 2022.

The country’s most outstanding apprenticeship employers for 2022 have been recognised today (29 June) for their vital work boosting career opportunities for more people.

The public sector secured the prestigious top slots on the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers 2022 list, with the Ministry of Defence first, the Royal Navy second and Royal Airforce in fourth place, closely followed by the Department of Work and Pensions in fifth position.

Lander Automotive Ltd has also topped a new category this year – Top 50 SME Apprenticeship Employers 2022  – which for the first time recognises the critical role these organisations play in creating opportunities, particularly for younger people and those in disadvantaged areas.

The leader boards are designed to showcase the very best of England’s apprenticeship employers, with those listed recognised for providing some of the most successful apprenticeship programmes over the previous 12 months.

Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said:

It is a fantastic achievement to be listed as one of the country’s most outstanding apprenticeship employers. Apprenticeships offer people of all ages and backgrounds the chance to gain the experience and skills needed to hit the ground running in their chosen career, while delivering the skilled workforce businesses need to grow and thrive.

I would like to congratulate all employers large and small for their brilliant work.  I look forward to hearing more about their successful apprenticeship programmes.

Colonel M T Ketterer of The British Army said:

Being listed in the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers is a real achievement for any employer – but for an >ambitious organisation who is justifiably proud of its apprenticeship programme and strives to ‘be the best’, we are delighted to have been ranked at number one.

The quality of our people and their competence in role is vital to the British Army that needs to be ready to meet every challenge as it delivers such an important and indeed varied role for the nation – and our apprenticeship programme is an integral part of our extensive training programme to ensure it can.

For those within the organisation, being in the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers helps to validate our programme, the employment offer made to every soldier and helps to ratify what we do. Externally, it showcases the scale, reach, diversity and quality of our programme and reinforces the variety of employment, trades available and development opportunities for those seeking to join us.

Managing Director Len Palmer, Lander Tubular Products said:

At Lander Tubular Products we have a long history of developing future talent though our apprenticeship schemes.  Over many generations in the business the apprentices have always provided us with an incredible pool of talent.  We are proud of our commitment to apprenticeships, and we are always happy when we are recognised externally for the brilliant outcomes, we deliver for our youngest team members.

The rankings attracted strong entries from across a wide range of industries including healthcare, banking, media and the automotive industry in the private, public and charitable sectors.

Employers including BT, Deloitte, Greene King and BAE Systems, Troup Bywaters + Anders, Lee Marley Brickwork Ltd alongside police forces, fire and ambulance services and several government departments have also been named for their efforts.

The Top 10 Apprenticeship Employers for 2022 are:

1. British Army
2. Royal Navy
3. BT
4. Royal Air Force
5. Department of Work and Pensions
6. Clarkson Evans
7. Mitchells & Butlers
8. RSM
9. BAE Systems
10. Grant Thornton

The Top 5 SME Apprenticeship Employers for 2022 are:

1. Lander Tubular Products
2. Adopstar
3. Lee Marley Brickwork
4. Applebridge
5. Darke & Taylor

The employer rankings have been developed by the Department of Education, in partnership with High Fliers Research, who independently assess and rank the country’s top apprenticeship employers.

The Department for Education has today, Wednesday 29 June, launched a review of how it works with academy trusts, helping make sure the children in schools within trusts get the right support to fulfil their potential.

The review will look at the standards trusts are held to, and the thresholds at which the government uses its powers to intervene in rare cases of underperformance, helping minimise trust failure and retain parents’ confidence.

It will also look at how the government supports the growth of existing strong trusts and the creation of new strong trusts, helping trusts improve schools. The government intends for all schools to be in or joining strong academy trusts by 2030.

The review will conclude by the end of 2022, and is intended to give clarity on how the powers in the Schools Bill, currently going through parliament, will be applied.

Schools Minister Baroness Barran said:

As we work towards all schools in strong academy trusts, we have a once in a generation opportunity to drive up standards for pupils that sadly remain too low in too many areas of the country.

The very many strong academy trusts across the country do a great job of improving their schools, working to the highest national and international educational standards while keeping their schools rooted in their local communities. Our proposals to allow local authorities to establish trusts will help draw the best of the maintained school sector into the new trust-led system.

But not every school is currently in a strong trust or has the option of joining one. Our three-pronged approach between the Schools White Paper, Schools Bill, and our new regulatory review, will change that. It will create a new, higher performing school system that parents love and gives every child every chance of success.

The review will:

• Look at how to retain and maximise academy trusts’ innovation, and reduce regulatory burdens, by producing clear standards that are transparently enforced
• Look at improving how intervention works against the new standards, by producing proportionate thresholds for the use of new powers in the Schools Bill for intervention in academy trusts themselves, and focusing government action on preventing failure before it occurs
• Consider how to commission new academy trusts and the expansion of existing trusts, helping make sure there are no ‘cold spots’ of the country where a school does not have an option to join a strong trust that is a good fit for its needs

The review will also build on the definition of a strong trust set out in the Schools White Paper – providing a high quality and inclusive education across their schools, improving their schools’ standards, maintaining their schools’ strong local identities, developing their workforce, and displaying strong financial management.

It will be chaired by the Schools Minister Baroness Barran, and be directly informed by an Expert Advisory Group including the Ofsted Chief Inspector Amanda Spielman, Confederation of School Trusts Chief Executive Leora Cruddas and LSE Professor of Political Science and Public Policy Martin Lodge, alongside further representatives from the academy trust sector to be confirmed shortly.

Confederation of School Trusts Chief Executive Leora Cruddas said:

I look forward to working with Ministers and the Department for Education through the period of the Commissioning and Regulatory Review.

It is essential that the approach to strategic commissioning and risk-based regulation protects the independence of School Trusts and promotes high quality education as a public good, as we move forward to build a strong and sustainable education system in England.

LSE Professor of Political Science and Public Policy Martin Lodge said:

I am honoured to be joining the external advisory group. It is an exciting challenge to contribute to the critically important development of the regulatory framework for academy trusts.

The review will engage throughout with parliamentarians, representatives from unions including ASCL and NAHT, and other interested parties via working groups, visits and workshops to test and iterate proposals.

It will consider what change might be needed immediately, in the medium-term and long-term, reflecting the Department’s commitment that in the first instance, the Schools Bill will not seek to materially change existing academy trust standards, and future changes will be informed by the findings of the review or further engagement with the sector.