Meetings

NDM6731 Caroline Jones (South Wales West)

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:

1. Welcomes the UK Government’s proposed review of university finance as announced on 19 February 2018.

2. Notes the reports from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development titled: 'Over-qualification and skills mismatch in the graduate labour market' and 'The graduate employment gap: expectations versus reality'.

3. Calls on the UK Government and the Welsh Government to:

a) work together to develop a sustainable model for future student finance;

b) abolish tuition fees for STEM, medical and nursing students; and

c) broaden the scope of the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales to review degree courses for expected earnings, and publish these reviews to all prospective students.

Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development - Over-qualification and skills mismatch in the graduate labour market

Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development - The graduate employment gap: expectations versus reality

The following amendments have been tabled:

 

Amendment 1 – Julie James (Swansea West)

 

Delete all and replace with:

 

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:

 

1. Notes the Welsh Government’s higher education funding review led by Professor Sir Ian Diamond published on 27 September 2016.

 

2. Notes that the Diamond Review found that living costs were the main barrier to those making the choice about whether to go to university.

 

3. Welcomes the new student finance package for 2018/19 launched by the Welsh Government which means:

 

a) students will receive maintenance support equivalent to the National Living Wage – the most generous in the UK;

 

b) every eligible student can claim a minimum grant of £1,000 that they will not have to pay back; and

 

c) Wales is the first country in Europe to introduce equivalent maintenance support across full-time and part-time undergraduates.

This will be extended to post-graduate students in 2019.

 

The Review of Higher Education Funding and Student Finance Arrangements in Wales

 

[If amendment 1 is agreed, amendments 2 and 3 will be de-selected]

 

Amendment 2 – Paul Davies (Preseli Pembrokeshire)

 

Delete point 3 and replace with:

 

Regrets that Wales is experiencing a brain-drain, with more university graduates leaving Wales than settling in the country.

 

Recognises the success of Wales’s further education institutions in supporting the retention of talent in the Welsh economy. 

 

Regrets the lack of level 6+ apprenticeship programmes available in Wales to upskill the workforce.

 

Calls on the Welsh Government to: 

 

a) Provide greater incentives for university graduates to settle in Wales once they have finished their degrees; 

 

b) Encourage greater engagement between higher education and further education institutions to promote talent retention; and 

 

c) Promote greater availability of level 6+ apprenticeships programmes in Wales.  

 

Amendment 3 – Rhun ap Iorwerth (Ynys Môn)

 

Add as new sub-point at end of point 3:

 

d) Implement the recommendation of the Diamond review for the Welsh Government to incentivise students to remain in Wales to study, or return to Wales after graduation.

The item started at 16.42

Voting on the motion and amendments under this item was deferred until Voting Time.

A vote was taken on the motion without amendment:

NDM6731 Caroline Jones (South Wales West)

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:

1. Welcomes the UK Government’s proposed review of university finance as announced on 19 February 2018.

2. Notes the reports from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development titled: 'Over-qualification and skills mismatch in the graduate labour market' and 'The graduate employment gap: expectations versus reality'.

3. Calls on the UK Government and the Welsh Government to:

a) work together to develop a sustainable model for future student finance;

b) abolish tuition fees for STEM, medical and nursing students; and

c) broaden the scope of the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales to review degree courses for expected earnings, and publish these reviews to all prospective students.

For	Abstain	Against	Total
6	0	46	52

The motion without amendment was not agreed.

The following amendments were tabled:

Amendment 1 – Julie James (Swansea West) 

Delete all and replace with:

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:

1. Notes the Welsh Government’s higher education funding review led by Professor Sir Ian Diamond published on 27 September 2016.

2. Notes that the Diamond Review found that living costs were the main barrier to those making the choice about whether to go to university.

3. Welcomes the new student finance package for 2018/19 launched by the Welsh Government which means:

a) students will receive maintenance support equivalent to the National Living Wage – the most generous in the UK;

b) every eligible student can claim a minimum grant of £1,000 that they will not have to pay back; and

c) Wales is the first country in Europe to introduce equivalent maintenance support across full-time and part-time undergraduates.
This will be extended to post-graduate students in 2019.

For	Abstain	Against	Total
27	0	25	52

Amendment 1 was agreed.

As amendment 1 was agreed, amendments 2 and 3 were de-selected

A vote was taken on the motion as amended:

NDM6731 Caroline Jones (South Wales West)

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:

1. Notes the Welsh Government’s higher education funding review led by Professor Sir Ian Diamond published on 27 September 2016.

2. Notes that the Diamond Review found that living costs were the main barrier to those making the choice about whether to go to university.

3. Welcomes the new student finance package for 2018/19 launched by the Welsh Government which means:

a) students will receive maintenance support equivalent to the National Living Wage – the most generous in the UK;

b) every eligible student can claim a minimum grant of £1,000 that they will not have to pay back; and

c) Wales is the first country in Europe to introduce equivalent maintenance support across full-time and part-time undergraduates. This will be extended to post-graduate students in 2019.

For	Abstain	Against	Total
36	0	16	52

The motion as amended was agreed.