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Concern over skills shortage


Ross Reid Staff Writer


A skills shortage in commercial diving could damage Scotland’s chances of exploiting job opportunities expected from the renewable energy sector, it has been claimed. With a major increase in offshore windfarm projects expected in the coming years, fears have been raised that expensive training costs and lack of funding support may lead to a shortage of qualified divers in Scotland.


It has been estimated that more than 2,000 commercial divers will be required to develop the rapidly expanding offshore windpower sector – an area Scottish ministers hope the country can lead on. Steve Ham, general manager at the Underwater Centre in Fort William, a world-leading training provider, said Scotland may have to rely on workers from overseas to fill the gap. He said: “Tings are changing significantly, maybe two to three years ago around 25 per cent of our students were from overseas and the bulk were from the UK.


Universities New universities chief warns against “lethal cuts”


Cera Murtagh Education Correspondent


Te new Convener of Universities Scotland has issued a stark warning against potentially “lethal cuts” to higher education. In an interview with Holyrood, Professor Bernard King said that rumoured cuts to the universities budget of 45 to 50 per cent following the Browne Review south of the


border would be fatal to the sector. “I’m possibly one of the few people saying it but I think the extent of the effect of some of the proposed cuts is potentially so great that actually, they’re potentially lethal – they’re not cuts,” he said. Te professor, who is also principal of the University of Abertay Dundee, believes Scotland should observe what happens in England following the Browne Review of higher education, due to report in


October, and should have its own debate on the future of the universities’ sector. King also delivered a frank message to MSPs: “Value the rich tradition of Scotland’s universities. Harm it at your peril. And in 20 years’ time, don’t look back as we do now at the motor industry in Britain and say, ‘How did we lose it?’ Because that’s what we could be doing.”


Full story see page 36 20 September 2010 Holyrood 11


Te number of people from the UK that are undertaking subsea training has fallen massively since the beginning of the credit crunch and I would say 80 per cent of students now come from abroad. “Te training courses are self- funded and people are finding it very difficult to afford the qualifications, especially with banks reducing the number of career development loans on offer. In the UK there is no real government support to undertake training, which is unlike countries like Norway, America and Australia where there is support. “We believe the offshore wind sector will need an extra 2,000 divers in the next six years. Tis year we will train probably about 30 or maybe 40 UK divers. If that number doesn’t change quickly then the divers will have to come from somewhere else or there could be a shortage. We have a situation where many people want to learn but simply cannot afford it.”


A study published last month by business analysts Douglas Westwood concluded that 1,700 divers would be needed during the installation phase of projects. It said with a potential


3,800 turbines coming online in Europe by 2016, an additional 500 divers would be required during the operations and maintenance phase. Ham added: “You really are looking at the need to train a new workforce and there are big questions as to where that workforce will come from. “Just after this centre was established in the early 1970s there was a government scheme in the UK which gave people 100 per cent grants and it trained people to high standards that were renowned across the world. “Scotland has a massive opportunity with renewables and it is clear a skilled workforce will be essential to that. Tere is a real danger, though, that plenty of other countries also have an eye on the prize and may be able to make better use of the opportunity.” A Scottish Government spokesman said: “Our Renewables Action Plan provides a clear framework for delivery of action on skills to ensure Scotland meets its potential for employment in renewables, and a wide range of public and private sectors are committed to delivering on this plan.”


IN BRIEF


Aberystwyth University after a non- Welsh speaker was appointed as vice- chancellor. The Welsh Language Society accused the university of “not fulfilling its duty to the local community”. University president Sir Emyr Jones Parry said making the language essential would have narrowed the field of candidates “excessively”.


Base fears Welsh MPs have urged the coalition government not to scrap a planned £14bn defence training academy in south Wales. The future of the base will be contingent on the findings of the Strategic Defence and Security Review.


Council debt charges revealed Welsh public sector bodies face debt charges of £340m this year, according to official figures. Councils are expected to make deep cuts as the level of financial support they get from the Assembly Government drops, but no local authority in Wales is understood to be close to defaulting on their borrowings.


WESTMINSTER Strike threat over cuts The government may face co-ordinated industrial action and civil disobedience as a result of impending public sector cuts, unions have warned. The GMB union said over 150,000 public sector jobs be lost as result of the cuts.


Queen’s Speech put back The coalition government has cancelled next year’s Queen’s Speech as part of plans to permanently move the state opening of parliament from autumn to spring. The change means the next speech will not take place until the spring of 2012.


Voter registration fast-tracked The introduction of compulsory individual voter registration in Britain is to be sped up. Changes to the system were originally planned for 2015, but ministers have decided to bring the reform forward to 2014 in order to accurately register new voters. Voters already on the electoral register will have until after the 2015 election to comply with the new rules.


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