Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill

My Lords, this is one in a series of probing amendments designed to elicit from the Minister the reason why the chief executive of skills funding has been enshrined in legislation, but the Skills Funding Agency as an organisation has not. We simply want to understand the Government’s reasoning why, while the Learning and Skills Council was set up as an NDPB, and the YPLA is to be accorded that status, the Skills Funding Agency is not. The 157 Group, for example, has expressed a desire to see the Skills Funding Agency established as an NDPB. It is worried that it is highly unusual for a funding agency not to have an independent board to oversee the progress and accountability of its work. Its concerns are that the body will be too closely tied to government and that any serious matters will have to be raised straight to the level of a government department. Therefore, instead of being an independent CEO, the chief executive will simply be a cog within, and subordinate to, the machinery of government. Does this not worry the Minister? Furthermore, as insufficient detail is included in the Bill, it would be useful if the Minister could explain what he envisages the structure of the SFA will be, what he considers to be its main functions and how it will carry them out. We need to probe this area because it was discovered in another place that the Government had indeed considered giving the SFA this status. It would be useful to learn from the Minister the reasons why this approach was rejected. The constitution, legal status and board of the SFA are not included in the Bill. Is the Minister unconcerned that this means that the structure can be altered on the whim of a Minister without any reference to Parliament? In addition, perhaps the Minister could inform your Lordships of the current practical position of the SFA. Is the senior management team in place? Could he give us details of any shadow running of the SFA, which is currently happening with the YPLA? We are concerned that the closing date for applications to head the SFA has long since passed. Can he confirm that no appointment has yet been announced? If that is correct, can he explain why, especially in view of the fact that there is already a chief executive of the YPLA? It seems that operations are perhaps running rather behind schedule. Does the Minister have any details of the timetable that he can share with your Lordships? Can he at least tell us how many months behind schedule the SFA is running at the moment?