A paradox of London is that its schools and universities are very good, yet too many of its people lack the skills they need to take advantage of the city’s opportunities.
Unemployment in the capital is high and rising, especially in its poorest areas. At the same time, employers frequently complain that they can’t find the workers they need. How can the gap between what firms in London need and what Londoners can offer them be closed?
My guest for the latest episode in my endearingly rough and ready podcast series, True London, is Muniya Barua, deputy chief executive of BusinessLDN, which represents many of the capital’s larger employers and lots of its universities and further education institutions.
She explained to me the various reasons why matching labour supply to employer demand is not an easy task in the capital, and talked about the London Local Skills Improvement Plan, a government-funded, employer-led initiative for working with education institutions and others to better equip Londoners looking to get into work or to secure better jobs than they currently have.
In the last few minutes of our conversation, Muniya reflected on the pre-budget news that the government is set to back an extension of the Docklands Light Railway south of the river into Thamesmead – a scheme Sir Sadiq Khan and Transport for London have long had ready to go – and likely to give the Mayor powers to raise a visitor levy (or “tourist tax”) in the capital. She also has some thoughts on the funding of London local government.
Read more about Capital City College here, London South East colleges here and New City College here. For more information about unemployment in London, see Trust for London’s analysis from earlier this year. Photo from BusinessLDN.
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