Government spending millions on marketing campaign to rescue failed apprenticeships policy

The Government has revealed it is paying advertising agency M&S Saatchi £2.5 million for an advertising campaign in an attempt to rescue the image of its failing flagship apprenticeships policy.

The Government recently admitted that the number of new apprenticeships started has fallen by 34 per cent in a year and the Prime Minister’s spokesperson distanced Number 10 from the Government’s own commitment to 3 million apprentices by April 2020.

In response to a question from Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner, the Minister for Apprenticeships and Skills said that the Department for Education has agreed a deal with M&C Saatchi worth £2.55 million this year covering agency fees, an advertising campaign and ‘promotional content’.

Angela Rayner MP, Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary, said:  

“Austerity is not over for our colleges, but this Government is more than happy to hand out millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to the Tories’ favourite advertising agency after abjectly failing to meet their own apprenticeships targets.

“Labour will genuinely end austerity, providing free lifelong learning in colleges and invest in workplace training as part of a National Education Service for the many, not the few”.