Apprentices are the future for businesses

BUSINESSES are today being urged to help solve Britain's spiralling youth unemployment problem by creating 100,000 more apprenticeship places by 2014.

On the first day of National Apprenticeship Week, Business Secretary Vince Cable stressed the UK government would also play its part by spending 1.4 billion on supporting work-place training schemes in 2010-11.

Apprenticeships are viewed as a key way to get young people, and adults who have been out of the work for several years, into jobs. According to the Office for National Statistics, one in five of Britain's 16 to 24-year-olds is now unemployed - the highest count since records began in 1992.

The government is urging more companies to follow the example of firms such as British Airways, British Gas, BT, Jaguar Land Rover, Superdrug and Proctor & Gamble, which will this year offer thousands of places to young apprentices.

Cable said such investment in training the next generation of skilled workers was key to building sustainable economic growth, and Britain should change its "outdated values" which place a higher importance on academic study than vocational training.

"I want to reinforce the message to business and young people that apprenticeships are a first-class way to start a career. That is why my department has pledged to work to create some 75,000 additional adult places than those promised by the previous government," Cable said.

However, questions have been raised over the drop-out rate. According to figures from Cable's own department, some 26.2 per cent apprentices did not complete their courses in 2009-10.