Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill

In moving Amendment 233, I shall speak also to Amendments 234, 251 and 251A, which are grouped. Amendment 233 ensures that the work of Ofqual in regulating our qualifications system represents value for money. Ofqual will not be able to deliver its aim unless it is given the remit of regulating the qualification system as a whole, rather than just the narrow remit of regulating individual providers or individual qualifications. The amendment will mean that it must look at the way in which qualifications are procured by schools and colleges and that it oversees the whole market. That must be in the best interests of learners, because schools and colleges must provide exams that are in their interests. Amendment 234 adds words at the end of the same subsection to require that Ofqual ensures that payments to awarding bodies are kept within inflation. Certain sectors often claim that their costs are such that above-inflation price increases are sometimes necessary, but I do not think that that will apply here. Schools and colleges should be protected from vast price rises by such an amendment. The AoC has told us that colleges, which currently pay £170 million a year in exam fees, would appreciate clarification on the criteria that will be used to make these judgments. Keeping fees within inflation would follow the approach taken, for example, in the water industry and other privatised utilities. Ofwat sets a limit on price rises for the forthcoming five years. Over what period will Ofqual be expected to do the same, if at all? Amendment 251 relates to Clause 133, which is about the power of Ofqual to cap fees payable to providers without any limit in the Bill. The amendment requires that Ofqual conducts a proper review of the market before capping fees, to the point where it is satisfied that doing so will remedy or prevent any adverse effects on competition. If Ofqual were to act too often as an economic regulator by the use of this capping power, it might serve to stifle innovation and might drive smaller, specialist providers out of the market. Fee capping should be used as a penalty only where there is proven evidence of market failure. Amendment 251 inserts an appeal process into the situation whereby Ofqual caps fees. We on these Benches want Ofqual to have real powers, but by not providing the appropriate review and appeal structure for the implementation of those powers capping fees would seem at odds with the desire to establish a regulator with proper accountability. Reference to the Competition Commission, provided for in our Amendment 251A, would provide such a fair and independent appeals process. I beg to move.