Reeves promises reset for our economy as she prepares for first Budget

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Rachel Reeves has promised her first Budget will be an economic “reset” for the UK.

The Chancellor said her statement on October 30 will invest in the “foundations of future growth”.

Ms Reeves was speaking before talks with finance ministers from around the world in Washington DC at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) annual meeting.

She said: “A Britain built on the rock of economic stability is a Britain that is a strong and credible international partner.

“I’ll be in Washington to tell the world that our upcoming Budget will be a reset for our economy as we invest in the foundations of future growth.

“It’s from this solid base that we will be able to best represent British interests and show leadership on the major issues like the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.”

Ms Reeves was handed a pre-Budget boost by the IMF, which on Tuesday upgraded its 2024 growth forecast for the UK economy.

It said UK gross domestic product (GDP) is due to grow by 1.1%, a significant upgrade after predicting 0.7% growth in July.

But the IMF’s chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said countries should tread a “narrow path in terms of fiscal consolidation”, after being asked about reports the Chancellor is considering changes to fiscal rules which could allow the state to borrow more.

He added that countries should not do “too much too quickly” in relation to tax and spending decisions in order to maintain stability.

Ms Reeves is thought to be considering tax increases and spending cuts amounting to around £40 billion-a-year as she seeks to repair the public finances while finding the money to fund services including the NHS.

In Washington, Ms Reeves will attend G7, G20 and IMF meetings to discuss global economic issues.

Joined by Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, she will support proposals to expand financing for countries to meet the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and tackle unsustainable debt.

The Chancellor will also press for all G20 countries to meet G20 best practice on debt transparency and move swiftly to implement support for countries facing pressing liquidity problems.

Meanwhile, Mr Miliband will meet finance chiefs including representatives from the World Bank to discuss supporting those on the front line of the climate crisis.

He and Britain’s climate envoy Rachel Kyte are expected to seek to use the trip to stoke ambition before Cop29 in two weeks and pitch the UK as “back in the business of climate leadership”.

Mr Miliband said: “The only way to protect current generations in the UK is by making Britain a clean energy superpower, and the only way to protect our children and future generations is by leading global climate action.

“With Cop29 kicking off in just over two weeks, we have a unique opportunity in Washington to focus minds on securing ambitious outcomes on pushing world leaders to deliver the climate finance needed to keep 1.5 degrees alive.

“I look forward to speaking to our international partners – alongside the Chancellor and Rachel Kyte – about how the UK is back in the business of climate leadership, standing up for the British people by leading on the biggest long-term threat our world faces.”

Published: 24/10/2024 by Radio NewsHub

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Most Year 10 pupils in England do not do any work experience placements report

The majority of Year 10 pupils did not do any work experience last year, a report has suggested. There is a wide gap between the proportion of teenagers doing work experience in the south of England and in other regions, according to the school support organisation The Key Group. Some secondary schools reported that they can no longer afford to run placements, while others said it had become harder to accommodate pupils since the pandemic due to more home working. It comes as the Labour Party’s election manifesto pledged to “guarantee two weeks’ worth of work experience” for every young person and improve careers advice in schools and colleges. The analysis by The Key Group, which studied 146,947 Year 10 pupils in 756 secondary schools in England, found that only 49% of young people aged 14 to 15 had done some work experience in the 2023/24 academic year. Among those who did work experience, the average time spent on a placement was just under five days, the analysis suggested, and fewer than 2% of pupils went on work experience for two weeks or more. Only a third (33.5%) of pupils in Yorkshire and The Humber recorded at least one session (a half day) of work experience in 2023/24, compared to 59.4% in the South West of England, according to the research. The report, which analysed Year 10 attendance data in 2023/24, also suggested that just 42.1% of pupils on free school meals went on work experience placements which is fewer than their peers (51.5%). Some careers leaders in schools told The Key Group that finding work experience placements had been harder since the pandemic “because workplaces themselves have changed”. But the research suggested that a higher proportion of schools and Year 10 pupils are taking part in work experience placements post-pandemic than in the 2018/19 academic year. The analysis found that the average number of work experience sessions completed by Year 10 pupils was lower in 2023/24 – 9.3 sessions (just under five days) – than before the pandemic. Only 1.7% of Year 10 pupils reported doing at least two weeks of work experience (20+ sessions) in 2023/24, compared to 5.2% in 2018/19. The Government will have a “huge challenge” to fulfil its pledge as work experience placements in England are a “long way off” from a two week entitlement, the report concluded. School leaders told The Key Group that they no longer run work experience placements as they had been required to pay for a health and safety check on the premises that pupils were visiting. One school said they were unsure whether they would be able to continue placements as they currently outsource their work experience scheme at a cost of £75 per pupil. The research looked at attendance data from Year 10 only as this is a popular time for work experience placements to take place in schools in England. Chris Kenyon, chief executive of The Key Group, said: “It is deeply worrying that there is such unequal access to work experience. It used to be a rite of passage at the age of 14 or 15, but it no longer is.” He added: “We don’t yet know what this Government means by its pledge to give every young person a minimum of two weeks’ quality work experience – whether that might extend to sixth formers, or include employers coming into schools, or virtual work experience. “But we do know that we are currently a long way off giving two-week placements to all pupils in Year 10 – a time when they are making important choices about what they might want to do later in life. There is a huge challenge ahead to fulfil that election pledge for all pupils.” “We need to encourage many more employers to step up to take on more pupils. To meet a target of all pupils doing two weeks’ work experience, we would need to quadruple the number of placement days offered by employers. “We need to make it easier for employers to make contact with schools, for example via a standardised form on all secondary school websites.” Claire Pritchard, chief executive of Broadleaf Partnership Trust in Sutton Coldfield in the West Midlands, which runs five schools, said: “There is so much our children can learn in the classroom, but equally so many valuable experiences that we need to make sure all of our students are given to complement this – work experience and career insights are top of that list.” Nick Brook, chief executive of Speakers for Schools, a charity that helps 11-19-year-olds to engage with employers and leaders, said: “We know that young people who do have work experience are typically from more affluent families as they often rely on parental networks to arrange it. “We cannot have a system that relies on who your mum and dad know, or where they might work, to determine whether you have access to workplaces and potential future employers.” A Department for Education spokesperson said: “This government is determined to break down barriers to opportunity for all our young people and transform their life chances. “Too many young people are still being held back, and we are determined to change that by ensuring that every young person receives two weeks’ worth of work experience and better careers advice at school.” Published: 24/10/2024 by Radio NewsHub

Sale of disposable vapes to be banned by next summer

The ban is set to come into force on 1st June 2025 The sale of disposable vapes will be banned by next summer, the Government has said. New legislation to ban the sale of single-use vapes from June 1, 2025 has been laid out in Parliament, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) confirmed on Wednesday. It added that businesses will have until the deadline “to sell any remaining stock they hold and prepare for the ban coming into force”. Defra said the UK Government and devolved governments had worked closely on the ban and would “align coming into force dates”. Circular Economy Minister Mary Creagh said single-use vapes were “extremely wasteful and blight our towns and cities”. Ms Creagh added: “That is why we are banning single use vapes as we end this nation’s throwaway culture. “This is the first step on the road to a circular economy, where we use resources for longer, reduce waste, accelerate the path to net-zero and create thousands of jobs across the country.” Last year, it was estimated that almost five million single-use vapes were either littered or thrown away in general waste every week in the UK – almost four times as much as the previous year. Defra said vape usage in England had grown by more than 400% between 2012 and 2023, with 9.1% of the British public now buying and using the products. Health Minister Andrew Gwynne said: “It’s deeply worrying that a quarter of 11-15-year-olds used a vape last year and we know disposables are the product of choice for the majority of kids vaping today. “Banning disposable vapes will not only protect the environment, but importantly reduce the appeal of vapes to children and keep them out of the hands of vulnerable young people. “The government will also introduce the Tobacco and Vapes Bill – the biggest public health intervention in a generation – which will protect young people from becoming hooked on nicotine and pave the way for a smoke-free UK.” On Monday, Health Secretary Wes Streeting promised to toughen up smoking laws with a “more ambitious” bill than the Conservatives. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill, tabled in the last parliament, sought to prevent anyone born after January 1 2009 from legally smoking by gradually raising the age at which tobacco can be bought. It also aimed to impose restrictions on the sale and marketing of vapes to children. Mr Streeting told reporters at an east London health facility on Monday: “We will introduce the Tobacco and Vapes Bill before Christmas.” Libby Peake, head of resources at Green Alliance, said: “Disposable vapes are the last thing our children and the planet need, and for too long the market for them has been allowed to grow unchecked.” Published: 24/10/2024 by Radio NewsHub

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Reeves promises reset for our economy as she prepares for first Budget

Rachel Reeves has promised her first Budget will be an economic “reset” for the UK.

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Most Year 10 pupils in England do not do any work experience placements report

Sale of disposable vapes to be banned by next summer

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