:33:08. > :33:14.Good morning, everybody, and thank you for coming to Leeds city College
:33:15. > :33:20.the day. Thank you to the college for hosting today's event. It is my
:33:21. > :33:27.pleasure to support Jeremy Corbyn today as he sets out our big deal to
:33:28. > :33:32.upgrade the economy. It is a big deal that recognises the future
:33:33. > :33:42.success of British business and industry, the future success of our
:33:43. > :33:45.public services, and the future success of each and every person in
:33:46. > :33:54.the United Kingdom is founded on five pillars: Education, childcare,
:33:55. > :33:58.industrial strategy... These form the foundations of an economic
:33:59. > :34:02.environment that ensures that every business, every public service and
:34:03. > :34:09.every employee can realise their full potential in Britain. Of the
:34:10. > :34:15.utmost critical importance in this plan is education, training and
:34:16. > :34:18.skills. Education starts when we are children but it shouldn't stop when
:34:19. > :34:25.we are teenagers. We should be enjoying the rewards of learning
:34:26. > :34:29.throughout our entire lives, not least to allow us the opportunity to
:34:30. > :34:34.choose our own career paths, but also to ensure that workers in
:34:35. > :34:42.Britain are kept skilled to the highest possible levels, ready to
:34:43. > :34:45.embrace technical log -- technological change and advancement
:34:46. > :34:50.in industry. If you are in insecure work in Britain, you can't cover the
:34:51. > :34:56.cost of going back to education. You are being held back. If your career
:34:57. > :35:00.has stalled and you can't access the qualifications you need to climb to
:35:01. > :35:03.the next level, then you are being held back. If you are in a
:35:04. > :35:07.fast-paced industry but you're not being given the skills to leave golf
:35:08. > :35:12.with it, then you are being held back. And if you are being held
:35:13. > :35:20.back, then so are our public services. -- to vault with it. Our
:35:21. > :35:27.industries need you to be confident and equipped with high skills for
:35:28. > :35:31.the future. High skills and lifelong learning will unlock the door to a
:35:32. > :35:40.richer Britain, richer employees, richer businesses and richer public
:35:41. > :35:43.services. In my role as Shadow Business Secretary I know all too
:35:44. > :35:47.well that for far too long adult training and skills have been the
:35:48. > :35:52.poor relation of our education system. This hasn't stopped the
:35:53. > :35:57.current Government from decimating it further since the last Labour
:35:58. > :36:01.Government left Paola in 2010. Funding allocations for adult
:36:02. > :36:08.further education and skills in England had fallen by ?240 million
:36:09. > :36:16.in 2015, which is a cup of 14% in real terms. And the adult skills
:36:17. > :36:25.budget lost over ?1 billion in 2015-16. The results of all of this,
:36:26. > :36:32.fewer and fewer available courses and fewer attending students funding
:36:33. > :36:36.further education -- pushing the further education sector into
:36:37. > :36:39.crisis. This is further education in Conservative Britain, and simply
:36:40. > :36:44.repairing the damage of the last seven years will barely address
:36:45. > :36:52.existing shortfalls. Not only have there been huge funding cuts, the
:36:53. > :36:56.sector has also been held back by repeated reorganisation. Labour's
:36:57. > :37:01.big deal to upgrade the economy will unleash the potential of our people
:37:02. > :37:07.all across Britain and in all age groups, so no one will be written
:37:08. > :37:12.off. Key here is confronting the high skills challenge posed by
:37:13. > :37:19.automation and Brexit, because the UK is mired in a productivity crisis
:37:20. > :37:23.and has been for decades. It takes UK workers five days to produce what
:37:24. > :37:34.workers in France, Germany and the US do in foul-mac days. That is not
:37:35. > :37:39.because we're lazy -- four days. Other nations have invested in the
:37:40. > :37:46.skills, infrastructure and education systems that businesses need to be
:37:47. > :37:49.more productive. The Conservative Government has failed on every count
:37:50. > :37:53.when it comes to providing businesses with the tools they need
:37:54. > :37:59.to succeed, and skills and education is one key failure and is a primary
:38:00. > :38:03.cause of the stagnant wages and poor economic growth that we see as a
:38:04. > :38:07.nation. I will say more about this in the coming weeks when I talk
:38:08. > :38:11.about Labour's industrial strategy, but today is about laying out
:38:12. > :38:18.Labour's plans for lifelong learning. Our new national education
:38:19. > :38:23.service. Our measures will upgrade the entire education system, and
:38:24. > :38:31.Labour will unleash the potential of the British people at every point in
:38:32. > :38:36.their lives. An education system that is truly fit for the
:38:37. > :38:41.21st-century, for the many, not the few. So, without further ado, it is
:38:42. > :38:44.my great pleasure to introduce our leader and the next Labour Prime
:38:45. > :38:57.Minister, Jeremy Corbyn. APPLAUSE
:38:58. > :39:02.Thank you, thank you very much, and thank you to all the students for
:39:03. > :39:05.being here this morning. I'm sorry the room isn't big enough
:39:06. > :39:10.everyone who wanted to come, but we will make sure we talk to everybody
:39:11. > :39:13.this morning. Thank you very much to Leeds city College for giving us
:39:14. > :39:18.this space this morning, and thank you for what you do to inspire and
:39:19. > :39:22.educate a whole generation of students. It is a great pleasure to
:39:23. > :39:27.be here with some good friends and colleagues. The leader of Leeds City
:39:28. > :39:35.Council has done a fantastic job in standing up for this city, and she
:39:36. > :39:38.and I have many wet and happy memories of trying to deal with the
:39:39. > :39:45.flooding crisis, and today, we pray for rain! And to my colleagues,
:39:46. > :39:48.Hilary Benn and Richard Bergin, brilliant MPs from this city
:39:49. > :39:52.standing up for the city. Thank you for coming along this morning. I am
:39:53. > :40:02.absolutely delighted to be speaking alongside Angela Rayner, annexed
:40:03. > :40:05.Education Secretary and the next Business Secretary. They have done a
:40:06. > :40:09.fantastic job in what has turned out to be a very Short Parliament. There
:40:10. > :40:13.is an advantage in that - it gets them round the Cabinet table a bit
:40:14. > :40:17.quicker than it would otherwise, so I am looking forward to your doing
:40:18. > :40:21.those jobs in Government. He will hear from Angela shortly about our
:40:22. > :40:26.detailed plans for education, training and skills. There are four
:40:27. > :40:31.weeks left of this general election campaign, and I hope everyone of you
:40:32. > :40:35.in this room is registered to vote, and that every student in this and
:40:36. > :40:39.every other college is ready to vote. Use your democratic right. A
:40:40. > :40:44.positive message we will take across the country are simply this: We want
:40:45. > :40:49.to see a better country, a Britain in which everyone has the
:40:50. > :40:53.opportunity to fulfil their potential, a Britain that works
:40:54. > :40:57.literally for the many and not just the few. Because if you are stuck on
:40:58. > :41:02.a zero-hours contract, you don't know what you will learn from one
:41:03. > :41:07.week to the next, or if you have talents but can't afford the tuition
:41:08. > :41:12.fees to develop them, or you are stopped in a job that you hate, then
:41:13. > :41:17.you are being held back. Labour is on your side and we want you to
:41:18. > :41:24.succeed, because those who aren't held back of those who are hoarding
:41:25. > :41:27.huge levels of wealth, or enormous influence of those who jealously
:41:28. > :41:32.cling on to privilege and power, they don't want any of that to
:41:33. > :41:38.change. They work together to make sure things don't change. It's no
:41:39. > :41:44.coincidence that we learn from this week 's Sunday Times Rich list that
:41:45. > :41:48.a third of those on the list donate to the Conservative Party. The
:41:49. > :41:52.Conservative Party looks after money, and money looks after the
:41:53. > :42:00.Conservative Party - it is a virtuous circle. You find yourself
:42:01. > :42:04.meeting a great deal of hostility. Question how things are and you
:42:05. > :42:12.encounter a abuse. Ask those at the top to pay a little more towards
:42:13. > :42:15.society and you are viewed as not online. That is how the system is
:42:16. > :42:25.rigged, and that is how it stays rigged. I say this: It doesn't have
:42:26. > :42:31.to be this way. Help us make the change we can all enjoy. On the same
:42:32. > :42:37.day that the Sunday Times Rich list came out, my friend, our Shadow
:42:38. > :42:41.Chancellor of the Exchequer, John McDonnell, set out a different form
:42:42. > :42:46.of change. He unveiled Labour's plan to upgrade our economy, because
:42:47. > :42:54.without an upgraded economy, there can be no fairer Britain. As John
:42:55. > :42:58.said, it means Government understanding that education,
:42:59. > :43:02.childcare, housing, infrastructure and industrial strategy are the
:43:03. > :43:08.essential pillars of upgrading the economy. So, this week and next, we
:43:09. > :43:12.are setting out our detailed plans for each pillar of our plan to
:43:13. > :43:18.upgrade the economy. We all benefit from an upgraded economy that
:43:19. > :43:24.preserves the long-term survival of our public services, so much under
:43:25. > :43:30.threat will stop we have said a Labour Government will build 1
:43:31. > :43:35.million homes and tackle the excesses of the private rental
:43:36. > :43:39.market. We want to put an end to our workforce being priced out of living
:43:40. > :43:44.near to where they work. Labour wants families to spend more time
:43:45. > :43:49.together will stop but it's no good making progress in housing for our
:43:50. > :43:53.workforce if it's not equipped to take the opportunity is made
:43:54. > :43:59.possible by an upgraded economy. So, today, Angela will be putting forth
:44:00. > :44:05.our detailed plans for education, skills and training. A higher
:44:06. > :44:12.skilled and confident workforce is a must have for a fairer Britain
:44:13. > :44:17.negotiating in a post-Brexit well. Our businesses, both large and
:44:18. > :44:23.small, will prosper on the back of education, skills and training
:44:24. > :44:26.finally being given serious attention by a serious Government.
:44:27. > :44:32.It is only fair that businesses should be asked to contribute to the
:44:33. > :44:35.plan by financing the steps we are setting out today, and we will do
:44:36. > :44:41.this by reversing the tax cuts made by the Conservatives and still keep
:44:42. > :44:48.UK rates of corporation tax at the lowest of the group of seven most
:44:49. > :44:52.industrialised countries. It is what we term our new settlement. When it
:44:53. > :44:58.comes to small businesses, the backbone of our economy, a Labour
:44:59. > :45:02.Government will restore small profits raked and make only a modest
:45:03. > :45:06.increase. To the owners and leadership of larger businesses and
:45:07. > :45:13.corporations, we will slowly raise your level of corporation tax to 26%
:45:14. > :45:16.by the end of the next Parliament. It was 28% when the coalition came
:45:17. > :45:25.into office in 2010. This is below the level of the last
:45:26. > :45:33.Labour Government. Inclusive, fair and costed. That's our plan to
:45:34. > :45:37.upgrade our economy. That's how we'll transform Britain. It's what
:45:38. > :45:45.you vote on, on June . Angela will set out our belief in
:45:46. > :45:50.education for all from cradle to grave because it's Labour investment
:45:51. > :45:56.that will ensure people are not held back. Don't led the Conservatives
:45:57. > :46:02.hold you back. Don't let the Conservatives hold this country
:46:03. > :46:06.back. I want now, I'm just the warm-up act, to introduce our Shadow
:46:07. > :46:12.Education Secretary Angela Rayner to set out her vision for a national
:46:13. > :46:17.education service. Angela is somebody that has fought against
:46:18. > :46:21.very difficult odds to achieve the position she now occupies. She's an
:46:22. > :46:26.inspiration to a very large number of young people all over the
:46:27. > :46:31.country. They see in Angela somebody who didn't have all the advantages
:46:32. > :46:36.that many others do in childhood and as a young person. But, by her
:46:37. > :46:40.determination to learn, study, strive and get on and work for the
:46:41. > :46:44.good of others, she was elected to Parliament and I'm very proud that
:46:45. > :46:49.she's our Shadow Education Secretary. Can I introduce to you,
:46:50. > :46:57.the next Education Secretary, Angela Rayner.
:46:58. > :47:11.Thank you, Jeremy. Thank you all for being here today. .Ed to people of
:47:12. > :47:17.this country, I say this, you have a clear choice on June
:47:18. > :47:21.8th. A choice between a Conservative Government that's let you and your
:47:22. > :47:26.children down or a Labour Government that will stand up for you and
:47:27. > :47:32.provide a better education and life chances for all. The Conservatives
:47:33. > :47:40.said they would look after our children. But instead, they've cut
:47:41. > :47:44.the funding to state schools, abolished education maintenance
:47:45. > :47:48.allowance and tripled tuition fees. Over the past seven years, the
:47:49. > :47:54.Tories have been dismantling the incredible legacy of the last Labour
:47:55. > :48:02.Government. And it has across the economy too. This Conservative
:48:03. > :48:07.Government has held you back. If you're a teacher, living the reality
:48:08. > :48:13.of falling investment and rising class sizes, you're being held back.
:48:14. > :48:18.If you're a parent, like I am, and your children aren't getting the
:48:19. > :48:25.education they deserve because class sizes are too high, then our
:48:26. > :48:30.children are being held back. It is truly frightening school budgets are
:48:31. > :48:35.being cut for the first time in 20 years. We're going to see a
:48:36. > :48:41.generation of our children being held back. It never used to be like
:48:42. > :48:46.this under Labour. Harold Wilson spoke of a new Britain forged in the
:48:47. > :48:51.white heat of technological revolution and Tony Blair spoke of
:48:52. > :48:56.the need to rebuild an education system fit for a millennium. This is
:48:57. > :49:02.how Labour always equip Britain, to rise to the new challenges, the
:49:03. > :49:09.history of Labour in power is of us giving power to people. To fulfil
:49:10. > :49:16.their potential. To have the economic security to start a family
:49:17. > :49:22.and get on in life. And to pass on to their children more than they
:49:23. > :49:28.were given. An education has always been at the heart of how we have
:49:29. > :49:32.delivered this. But in the past seven years, as the Tories dragged
:49:33. > :49:39.us further away from the legacy of the last Labour Government, more and
:49:40. > :49:43.more children are being held back. Held back by an education system
:49:44. > :49:51.that, under the Conservatives, isn't giving them the support that they
:49:52. > :49:56.need. That over 800,000 young people not in education, employment or
:49:57. > :50:00.training, who aren't able to get a good job, are being held back by a
:50:01. > :50:09.Government that is not supporting them. The nine million adults who
:50:10. > :50:15.have poor literacy, poor numeracy or both, too often attract in low wage,
:50:16. > :50:28.low skilled work, struggling to make ends meet as wages stagnate and
:50:29. > :50:37.living costs rise. Because for a long time I was held back too. If
:50:38. > :50:41.you grow up in poverty, and on a rundown estate, it doesn't take much
:50:42. > :50:44.for you to feel held back. You feel you've never had the same
:50:45. > :50:49.opportunities as your better-off mates for even the most basic
:50:50. > :50:56.things. You feel like education isn't a for you. You leave school
:50:57. > :51:02.without qualifications. You become NEAT, just another statistic on
:51:03. > :51:06.Philip Hammond's spreadsheet. Of course, in my case, I left school
:51:07. > :51:10.pregnant too. At that point, you forget all about feeling held back
:51:11. > :51:15.and you start to worry about the most basic things. How to make ends
:51:16. > :51:22.meet and provide for a child. How to try and give them even a little bit
:51:23. > :51:28.more than you had yourself. You do the best you can. But it can be so
:51:29. > :51:34.easily through no fault of your own, end up in an early adult life
:51:35. > :51:40.trapped in a cycle of deprivation, unable to get a decent wage you need
:51:41. > :51:48.to break out of it. Slowly watching your dreams of becoming a nurse, a
:51:49. > :51:54.teacher or a scientist slip away as fantasies created by a young, naive
:51:55. > :51:57.child. But education can offer a line that's simply transformative.
:51:58. > :52:04.It shouldn't stop at a particular age in life. Like many people,
:52:05. > :52:08.including some of my colleagues, I went back to education as an adult
:52:09. > :52:17.to get the skills and the qualifications I missed the first
:52:18. > :52:20.time round. I did that thanks to a Labour Government introducing free
:52:21. > :52:25.childcare, Sure Start centres and free adult learner courses for my
:52:26. > :52:30.local college. It's difficult to say how much this changed my life. But I
:52:31. > :52:35.think I can safely say that 23 it hadn't been there for me, I wouldn't
:52:36. > :52:44.be standing here in front of you today. I left school feeling I was
:52:45. > :52:49.thick, feeling a failure. For too many, the transformative power of
:52:50. > :52:54.education is lost from the schools not getting the funding they need to
:52:55. > :53:00.the debts you need to take on to return to education as an adult. I
:53:01. > :53:07.feel that the opportunities that were there for me are not there for
:53:08. > :53:14.those who need now. But things can be different. We can build a fairer,
:53:15. > :53:21.richer Britain where opportunity and prosperity can be shared by all.
:53:22. > :53:28.That provides businesses with the skilled and ready British workforce.
:53:29. > :53:34.And that is why I am proud today to announce the first stages of
:53:35. > :53:39.Labour's national education service. First, we will secure the best
:53:40. > :53:46.education possible for every single child. By getting the basics right.
:53:47. > :53:54.And that starts with proper funding of our schools. We will reverse the
:53:55. > :53:58.?3 billion of cuts that our schools currently face by 2020 and protect
:53:59. > :54:05.per pupil funding over the course of the next Parliament. And, unlike the
:54:06. > :54:12.Tories, when we say real terms, we mean real terms. No child will be
:54:13. > :54:16.held back by being in a school that doesn't have the staff it needs or
:54:17. > :54:21.can't offer the curriculum our children need. Under Labour, every
:54:22. > :54:29.child, whatever their background, will be begin the opportunity to
:54:30. > :54:33.unlock their full potential. We will give further and technical
:54:34. > :54:39.education, the parity of esteem that it deserves. Not just with warm
:54:40. > :54:42.words but with bold action. We will give further education to
:54:43. > :54:47.16-19-year-olds the funding it needs. Reversing the seven years of
:54:48. > :54:55.managed decline under the Conservatives. NEETS will no longer
:54:56. > :55:00.be held back but instead given the support they need to go into further
:55:01. > :55:07.education and be able to acquire the qualifications they need to get on
:55:08. > :55:15.in life. It's vital that we have lifelong learning. Learning is a
:55:16. > :55:19.ticket, not just out of poverty, but also out of isolation and loneliness
:55:20. > :55:26.that many of us will face at some point in our lives. 30% of jobs will
:55:27. > :55:31.be affected by the rise of automatication. Up to nine million
:55:32. > :55:36.more people who will see their industries decline as their
:55:37. > :55:40.livelihoods disappear. If anyone thinks the Conservatives are up to
:55:41. > :55:45.the challenge that these changes to our economy will bring, I would
:55:46. > :55:49.remind them of this. What happened in a post-industrial towns up and
:55:50. > :55:56.down our country, including in Leeds? All the Conservatives did
:55:57. > :56:01.under power, under Margaret Thatcher and John Major was manage the
:56:02. > :56:04.decline of our industries and left nothing but low-paid, low-skilled
:56:05. > :56:08.work in its place. Ghost towns with the heart ripped out of our
:56:09. > :56:14.communities left to rot with little opportunities. I tell you, Theresa
:56:15. > :56:20.May, she's continuing Thatcher's legacy. There's nothing strong and
:56:21. > :56:25.stable in creating an economy that holds people back and puts a cap on
:56:26. > :56:31.their ambition and leaves them in job insecurity. In only Labour has
:56:32. > :56:36.the vision to deliver a fairer Britain. Where opportunities are
:56:37. > :56:43.available to all and prosperity is shared. The national education
:56:44. > :56:47.service has been developed by thousands of people, thousands of
:56:48. > :56:53.teachers and organisations who have spoken to me over the last 12 months
:56:54. > :57:00.either by e-mail or in person, in my many visits up and down the UK. Of
:57:01. > :57:08.course, in my own constituency of Ashton-under-Lyne. The Labour Party
:57:09. > :57:14.has listened. You are the heart of Labour's national education service.
:57:15. > :57:21.Offering opportunity for all to ensure nobody, be they a child,
:57:22. > :57:26.adult or a community, is held back. This will help everyone who wants to
:57:27. > :57:31.use education to enrich their own life and their career. Moving into
:57:32. > :57:38.jobs with better wages and more security. Education is a central
:57:39. > :57:45.pillar to Labour's plan to upgrade Britain's economy. Because all of
:57:46. > :57:53.our businesses will benefit from Labour's plans too as they thrive in
:57:54. > :57:57.a richer Britain. As Rebecca laid out earlier, productivity in Britain
:57:58. > :58:01.remains stubbornly low compared to our competitors. The average German
:58:02. > :58:06.worker can make everything a British one does in a week and take Fridays
:58:07. > :58:11.off. It is no surprise that countries with high quality,
:58:12. > :58:16.technical education, have more productive economies. Which is why
:58:17. > :58:22.Labour will upgrade Britain's economy by ending the historic
:58:23. > :58:25.negligent of further education. Giving teachers and facilities of
:58:26. > :58:33.investment they need to lead the world. I will make sure the
:58:34. > :58:38.education system is fit for the 21st Century by introducing free,
:58:39. > :58:45.lifelong learning education in further education colleges. Labour
:58:46. > :58:49.will abolish adult learn alones and make all adult education free at the
:58:50. > :58:56.point of use for all those who need it. So, adults who don't have the
:58:57. > :59:02.basic skills they need to move on and move up in life will no longer
:59:03. > :59:09.be held back by the fear of loans. They will instead be able to return
:59:10. > :59:13.to education whenever they need it. It will enable everyone to upskill
:59:14. > :59:22.or retrain at any point in their life. It will correct the historic
:59:23. > :59:29.negligent of further Education Secretarier by investments in
:59:30. > :59:33.teachers and in our facilities. Labour will set a target for all
:59:34. > :59:37.further education teaching staff to have teaching qualifications within
:59:38. > :59:46.five years and we will back this up with financial support. We will
:59:47. > :59:51.increase capital investment to equip colleges to deliver levels and an
:59:52. > :59:56.official pre-apprenticeship training programme. Beyond lifelong learning,
:59:57. > :00:01.we will transform the provision of apprenticeships but there must be a
:00:02. > :00:07.focus on quality and not just quantity. Frankly, the number of
:00:08. > :00:12.apprentice ships does not matter if they're more about poor wages than
:00:13. > :00:17.getting a foot on the career ladder. Currently, half of all
:00:18. > :00:22.apprenticeships are below national vocational qualification of level
:00:23. > :00:26.two. This is simply not good enough. So, a Labour Government will shift
:00:27. > :00:30.the emphasis from quantity to quality by doubling the number of
:00:31. > :00:32.completed level three apprentice ships before the end of the next
:00:33. > :00:42.Parliament. It is only by transforming our
:00:43. > :00:47.education system that we can upgrade our economy so that nobody and no
:00:48. > :00:53.community is left behind. And while the Tories have seen the benefits of
:00:54. > :00:59.the economic growth go to a small number of their very wealthy,
:01:00. > :01:08.concentrated in the south-east, Labour will share prosperity across
:01:09. > :01:12.the country. We will ring fence ?240 million from the apprenticeship levy
:01:13. > :01:15.to give small and medium-sized companies the support they need to
:01:16. > :01:21.recruit and train highly skilled staff, and encourage joined up
:01:22. > :01:24.thinking between local Government, schools and the further education
:01:25. > :01:28.sector and businesses so that everyone, young and old, can leave
:01:29. > :01:31.education with a valued qualification and the skills they
:01:32. > :01:36.need to get a decent job in their local community. And we recognise
:01:37. > :01:43.that 75% of apprenticeships are delivered by the independent
:01:44. > :01:47.providers, and we appreciate their contribution to the sector. And yes,
:01:48. > :01:55.we are going to ask businesses to pay a little bit more tax to fund it
:01:56. > :01:59.all, because this is... They have an opportunity, an important part to
:02:00. > :02:04.play in a new deal for Britain, transforming our economy. Quite
:02:05. > :02:09.simply, we are asking good businesses to do what they have
:02:10. > :02:13.always done and what they always do - to make long-term investments that
:02:14. > :02:20.will yield a significant economic return. And the Labour Party and
:02:21. > :02:28.Britain's businesses both know that we face our exit from the European
:02:29. > :02:31.Union, that we need to upscale our workforce to tackle the challenges
:02:32. > :02:37.that we face in the years to come, and it has never been more
:02:38. > :02:41.important. Labour's National education service will give everyone
:02:42. > :02:45.in Britain, no matter their age or background, the opportunities they
:02:46. > :02:51.need to use education to transform their lives, just as it did for me.
:02:52. > :02:55.And the businesses that help us fund it will get a highly skilled
:02:56. > :03:00.workforce, more productive and better able to adapt to the
:03:01. > :03:04.challenges to come. This will give them the certainty and security they
:03:05. > :03:12.need to continue to create the jobs and wealth across Britain. There can
:03:13. > :03:18.be no doubt that we face great challenges in the years to come.
:03:19. > :03:21.From Brexit, to the rise of automation to the decline of
:03:22. > :03:28.industries that will be replaced in our economy by new high-tech and
:03:29. > :03:30.green industries. It takes a united approach of individuals and
:03:31. > :03:36.governments at all levels and business to respond to them to
:03:37. > :03:41.ensure that we can deliver opportunity, security and prosperity
:03:42. > :03:45.for all. By offering everyone a properly funded school, a
:03:46. > :03:51.high-quality technical education and support for lifelong learning that
:03:52. > :04:03.will allow everyone to Rhys Gill, retrain and return to education as
:04:04. > :04:07.they need to. -- to gain new skills. We want to deliver an education
:04:08. > :04:13.service fit for the new millennium, to deliver richer lives for Britain,
:04:14. > :04:17.and a richer Britain for us all. A National education service
:04:18. > :04:22.delivering hope and prosperity. For the many, and not the few.
:04:23. > :04:41.APPLAUSE And for those near the window, we
:04:42. > :04:48.are delivering you sunburn if you don't have factor 50 on! Apologies
:04:49. > :04:51.for the heat. We have time for some questions, and I would like to hear
:04:52. > :04:56.from the students as well as the Prez, if I may. I have seen a
:04:57. > :05:01.fantastic sign you have on the wall about registering to vote. Just to
:05:02. > :05:07.remind you, and you are covered in stickers, so make sure you are
:05:08. > :05:10.registered to vote because it is critical your voices heard in this
:05:11. > :05:16.election. You have until the 22nd of May. We will take the questions in
:05:17. > :05:26.rounds of three. One from the lady with a blonde hair just there,
:05:27. > :05:31.firstly. ITV News. Angela said people are being held back by fear
:05:32. > :05:35.of loans. There is no promise here to scrap tuition fees, and only the
:05:36. > :05:41.very poorest students will qualify for your maintenance grants. You are
:05:42. > :05:48.helping the few, not the many, aren't you? Next question, we will
:05:49. > :05:56.do them in rounds of three. The gentleman with the red tie and the
:05:57. > :05:59.stripey shirt. Will Hazel from the Times educational supplement.
:06:00. > :06:08.Jeremy, what are your thoughts on the massive shake-up to GCSE grading
:06:09. > :06:12.systems, which will happen this summer and I would imagine will
:06:13. > :06:18.affect students in this room. One more. Any questions on this side? A
:06:19. > :06:29.lady at the back in a black and white top. There is a microphone on
:06:30. > :06:35.the way. My question is not specifically about education but
:06:36. > :06:39.it's about children and adoption. Would you consider amending the
:06:40. > :06:42.children's act to cater for adoptive families whose children need to live
:06:43. > :06:47.elsewhere due to the results of their rarely trauma? Currently, this
:06:48. > :06:54.is treated in the same way as children removed from abusive
:06:55. > :07:00.family, which demonises the doctors. Can you explain the question a bit
:07:01. > :07:02.more? At the moment, if adopted children cannot stay with their
:07:03. > :07:13.adoptive families due to their attachment issues, they are removed
:07:14. > :07:19.under a care order and the adoptive family is treated in the same way
:07:20. > :07:23.that abusive parents are treated when the children are removed for
:07:24. > :07:32.their own safety. OK, I see your point. Thank you. Shall I take some
:07:33. > :07:37.of them first, and then Jeremy, you can pop up if I don't catch them? I
:07:38. > :07:40.know, Rachel, you want to Jeremy to answer your question, but one of the
:07:41. > :07:44.reasons why I didn't want to give too much of the manifesto I today
:07:45. > :07:48.was the what two things I wanted to focus on. One was to reassure
:07:49. > :07:50.parents who are frightened up and down the country that their schools
:07:51. > :07:55.don't have the funding they need. That was first priority to me, to
:07:56. > :07:59.say to any parent out there today that your children will have the
:08:00. > :08:08.funding you need, because we know we are already losing teachers and
:08:09. > :08:10.support staff, and that parents are already being asked to support
:08:11. > :08:13.schools and give donations, so I wanted to do that. I also wanted the
:08:14. > :08:17.focus to be on further education, because I am sick of the focus being
:08:18. > :08:21.on higher education. Further education changed my life. I wanted
:08:22. > :08:25.there to be a day where a politician in Paola said, you are just as
:08:26. > :08:29.important. The rest of the tuition fees, wait for the manifesto, but
:08:30. > :08:32.the date is about further education, lifelong learning and adult
:08:33. > :08:34.education. That's what I wanted it to be about.
:08:35. > :08:48.APPLAUSE Will, I think me and you are the
:08:49. > :08:53.only people who have heard of the education shake-up and the greats
:08:54. > :08:57.that will -- and a change to the grading that will happen in the
:08:58. > :09:01.summer. Half of the people I talk to don't know about it. It concerns me
:09:02. > :09:04.and I think the Government have failed. It has been systematics
:09:05. > :09:09.since I took over this brief, because they are changing too much
:09:10. > :09:11.and it is not evidence -based. They are not allowing changes to be
:09:12. > :09:16.bedded in and they are not basing them on evidence. I have said,
:09:17. > :09:22.because of my working-class roots, I wasn't a teacher, but I know from my
:09:23. > :09:27.background that having a team of experts and listening is the best
:09:28. > :09:32.thing you can do to provide a well rounded, brilliant team and good
:09:33. > :09:35.policy, and this Government fails to listen to policy and fails the base
:09:36. > :09:40.their policies on evidence, so that is the difference between us. I
:09:41. > :09:43.think it is chaotic, what the Government has done, and I think
:09:44. > :09:47.there is a challenge the Government still hasn't faced in terms of how
:09:48. > :09:52.they support businesses and our students, and frankly, there will be
:09:53. > :09:55.many students who get GCSEs results in September and will feel like
:09:56. > :09:56.failures, and it is not their failure but the Government's.
:09:57. > :10:08.APPLAUSE Thank you for the three questions.
:10:09. > :10:12.Angela is right - today is about further education, the esteem with
:10:13. > :10:17.which we hold it, and the value of colleges and the opportunity which
:10:18. > :10:21.can develop into university education or apprenticeships. It can
:10:22. > :10:24.develop into a whole lot of things. On the question of fees for
:10:25. > :10:28.universities, you will have to wait for the manifesto. I know you are
:10:29. > :10:32.desperate for it, and I have some stuff in my pocket, but sorry, I'm
:10:33. > :10:37.not allowed to give it to you. Do you mind? Can you cope with the
:10:38. > :10:41.excitement? I don't like to wait. I know you don't like to, but you will
:10:42. > :10:46.have to! I am really sorry. I can tell you this: We value people who
:10:47. > :10:53.worked really hard in our public services. We value our nurses, we
:10:54. > :10:58.all value our nurses. We will reintroduce the nurse bursary so
:10:59. > :11:01.nobody is prevented from taking an education and training course in a
:11:02. > :11:10.qualification in nursing to work in our NHS. They will get a bursary to
:11:11. > :11:15.do it under a Labour Government, OK? On the point on GCSEs, I endorse
:11:16. > :11:18.what Angela has just said. It is difficult to explain this to
:11:19. > :11:23.students who at this moment, and I was talking to some yesterday, are
:11:24. > :11:28.going through the trauma of starting GCSEs, going through day after day
:11:29. > :11:31.about very complex matrix of exams and knowing that the grading system
:11:32. > :11:38.has been so changed that they are going to feel a bit devalued at the
:11:39. > :11:41.end of it, so that has to be explained, it has to be explained in
:11:42. > :11:46.the publication of the results, and it has to be explained to all future
:11:47. > :11:52.employers and universities exactly what it means to have done your
:11:53. > :11:57.GCSEs in 2017 compared to 2016 or any other time, because it is a very
:11:58. > :12:01.traumatic time, and you think of all those students working really hard,
:12:02. > :12:04.they need to be rewarded, appreciated and supported in what
:12:05. > :12:08.they are trying to do in school in order to go one do other great
:12:09. > :12:12.things in their lives. The points that you raised about adoption,
:12:13. > :12:15.thank you very much for them. I fully understand that. Those that
:12:16. > :12:22.take on adoption are doing a fantastic job for all of us, because
:12:23. > :12:28.children that are taken into care for all kinds of reasons need to be
:12:29. > :12:33.fully supported, not just at the age of 18 but much longer than that. If
:12:34. > :12:37.you grew up with your biological parents, you maintain a relationship
:12:38. > :12:41.with them for the rest of your life. Adoption is for life, so we should
:12:42. > :12:46.be supporting the adoptive family for much longer than just the time
:12:47. > :12:49.when the children reach early adult hood or even into their early 20s.
:12:50. > :12:54.On the point you are making about those that have to move somewhere
:12:55. > :12:58.else for their own safety, I fully understand that. There should be no
:12:59. > :13:02.stigma whatsoever attached to those that have stepped up to help our
:13:03. > :13:08.children, and I want to say now, this opportunity, thank you to all
:13:09. > :13:13.those people around this country who do take on the very difficult job of
:13:14. > :13:17.fostering. They are doing a huge good for all of us. And thank you
:13:18. > :13:26.for those that go even further and become adoptive parents. Thank you
:13:27. > :13:29.to all of them for what they do. It is rewarding for them but it is also
:13:30. > :13:33.a very difficult time for many of them. Yes, we will look at
:13:34. > :13:36.legislation and make sure there was no stigma attached whatsoever to it
:13:37. > :13:41.because of circumstances way beyond the control of both the children and
:13:42. > :13:47.the adoptive parents. Thank you for your question.
:13:48. > :13:55.APPLAUSE Time for a few more questions. Emily
:13:56. > :13:59.at the back. Jeremy Corbyn, just your comments on the news that has
:14:00. > :14:03.broken in the last few minutes, from what we understand, the CPS is not
:14:04. > :14:06.going to have any criminal prosecutions into Conservative
:14:07. > :14:11.spending on the last election. Could we get your thoughts on that? We've
:14:12. > :14:19.got a student, I think, at the front, in the black T-shirt. This
:14:20. > :14:23.strays from the topic of education a bit, but it is more if if Labour
:14:24. > :14:29.were to win the general election, will they be pushing a renewable
:14:30. > :14:37.energy policy for the future? And a lady with glasses. Just on the topic
:14:38. > :14:42.of the GCSEs and being changed for this year and staff, my sister is
:14:43. > :14:48.doing then this year, and I've found out some months ago that the English
:14:49. > :14:53.literature, when they are doing the poetry section, they are having to
:14:54. > :14:58.memorise 15 poems, I think it was, and all the themes on them and
:14:59. > :15:04.basically only one or two would appear in the exam, and I thought,
:15:05. > :15:08.shouldn't the education be more an application of a concept rather than
:15:09. > :15:15.having to memorise an entire anthology of poems or an entire
:15:16. > :15:23.anthology of anything, really? Thank you. On the last question, about
:15:24. > :15:27.memorising 15 poems, I can probably quote is much more than 15 poems at
:15:28. > :15:31.you because I love poetry, but the idea that you would send a young
:15:32. > :15:35.person into an exam having to remember 15 poems on the base is one
:15:36. > :15:38.of them might show up on the exam paper is going to put them off
:15:39. > :15:40.poetry for the rest of their lives. And that is not what we want to
:15:41. > :15:46.achieve. APPLAUSE
:15:47. > :15:56.I want people to love poetry and be inspired by it, not put off it. What
:15:57. > :16:04.is your favourite poem? I can't remember any of them. Take a poetry
:16:05. > :16:12.after the exams. John Cooper Clarke, he is good. Yes, John Cooper Clarke
:16:13. > :16:15.or John Lennon. The question of renewable energy, it will be in the
:16:16. > :16:19.manifesto what the figures are. What I can say is that the two leadership
:16:20. > :16:24.campaigns that I ran for in the Labour Party, I made it very clear
:16:25. > :16:29.that I want to move the balance much more towards renewable energy in
:16:30. > :16:34.this country. We have moved some way towards that with the development of
:16:35. > :16:39.onshore and offshore wind farms, solar generation and tidal barrage
:16:40. > :16:42.schemes, such as the one in Swansea and others that are being
:16:43. > :16:48.considered. We could achieve more than half, possibly as much as two
:16:49. > :16:53.thirds coming from renewable sources. It is a huge job creator. I
:16:54. > :17:01.was in Northumbria recently where there is the development by Arch
:17:02. > :17:04.which had a local and owned company of the former coal-fired power
:17:05. > :17:12.station which is being used as a dock plays in order to take the wind
:17:13. > :17:18.turbines out there is a huge enterprise going on there. A lot of
:17:19. > :17:23.jobs being created. I'm very committed to much more sustainable
:17:24. > :17:26.energy and when buildings are constructed, look around this city
:17:27. > :17:30.and all other cities in this country, if we had a planning
:17:31. > :17:38.requirement of solar powered cells in the rooms as well as solar power
:17:39. > :17:48.is -- panels in the city, it all adds up. It is an attitude of mind.
:17:49. > :17:53.I'm very keen to put it forward. On the question of the CPS, I have only
:17:54. > :18:00.just heard that news. I'm interested and surprised by it, but we have got
:18:01. > :18:02.to look at the details of it. Quite clearly, the Electoral Commission is
:18:03. > :18:08.independent. Crown Prosecution Service is independent, director of
:18:09. > :18:14.public prosecution is independent, they have to make a judgment on it.
:18:15. > :18:22.Our electoral laws must be adhered to. There are strict spending limits
:18:23. > :18:25.for a reason, so that money can't buy power, only votes in the ballot
:18:26. > :18:35.box can and that is why I want you all to register your vote. I'm
:18:36. > :18:43.afraid that is it for questions. Angela want to do answer. What was
:18:44. > :18:47.loaded in the poetry question for me and what is really devastating about
:18:48. > :18:50.what the Government has done for the curriculum is they have choked out
:18:51. > :18:53.the love of learning. That is what the day is about for me, bringing
:18:54. > :18:59.that back. The passion of lifelong learning. I didn't enjoy school. I
:19:00. > :19:05.felt education was something that was dumb to me, when I got older, I
:19:06. > :19:10.love finding out new facts. If all we do is feed people for a test, we
:19:11. > :19:13.really don't get the best out of people and you don't get that love
:19:14. > :19:18.of learning and lifelong learning. We will do things differently. Watch
:19:19. > :19:21.out for our manifesto. We want people to love learning not be
:19:22. > :19:26.concerned by it. Because we all learn all of our lives. That is what
:19:27. > :19:35.Angela is proposing, lifelong learning, cradle to grave. You don't
:19:36. > :19:39.ever stop being a student. It just remains for me to say thank you to
:19:40. > :19:43.everybody for coming today. I know it has been a bit warm in the room
:19:44. > :19:52.so go out now and enjoy the sunshine. Thank you to Leeds city
:19:53. > :19:57.College for hosting today's event. I have to say it is very apt that we
:19:58. > :20:02.are launching a visionary educational policy going forward in
:20:03. > :20:07.a place that I understand used to be the home of monopoly, they used to
:20:08. > :20:12.manufacture the Monopoly board. A home of leading industry, a home of
:20:13. > :20:16.education provision. It hosts a leading educational visit down like
:20:17. > :20:27.vision for the future. Thank you very much.