Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds wants to see British talent prosper (Image: Getty)
Britain’s industrial base will be rebuilt by British workers and not “foreign labour”, the Government has pledged as it unveils £275million to boost skills. It claims the days when opportunities are “shipped overseas” are over. The Prime Minister will launch a new industrial strategy on Monday with the goal of boosting skills in key areas including engineering and defence. The Government insists its “plan to rebuild British industry” backs “British talent, not foreign labour”.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “To make Britain the best place in the world to do business, we also need the best workforce in the world with the right skills and expertise to thrive. Our modern industrial strategy will be powered by investing in British people.
“It will help transform our skills system to end the overreliance on foreign labour, and ensure British workers can secure good, well-paid jobs in the industries of tomorrow and drive growth and investment right across the country, making our plan for change a reality.”
Mr Reynolds claimed previous governments had “watched from the sidelines as British industry has faced under-investment and opportunities have been shipped overseas”. He said the industrial strategy is a “downpayment on a decade of renewal”.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said skills are “key to breaking the link between background and success for young people and delivering prosperity for our country”.
The strategy comes amid major concern about the one in seven young people not in education or employment. The number of people doing apprenticeships has crashed by nearly a fifth between 2016-17 and 2023-24.
There is also worry in Government about the “UK’s growing domestic skills gaps”. New “technical excellence colleges” are intended to train-up workforces required in local economies.
Short courses will allow people to gain new skills in areas including Artificial Intelligence and engineering.
Meanwhile, there will be a drive to improve expertise in the defence sector. As well as funding for courses, there will be investment in “cutting-edge university facilities” so more people can gain the world-class skills the sector demands.
Stephen Phipson of manufacturers’ organisation Make UK said the lack of skills had been “the sector’s Achilles’ heel for decades”.
Keir Starmer breaks silence on Iran strikes as Reform UK praises Trump’s decision
Sir Keir Starmer has urged Iran to return to negotiations after Donald Trump launched US air strikes on the regime’s nuclear facilities. The Prime Minister said Iran’s nuclear programme is a “grave threat” which the US military action would “alleviate”.
There is understood to have been no UK involvement in the action, which comes after Sir Keir and Foreign Secretary David Lammy had pushed for a diplomatic solution rather than US action, which could further destabilise the region.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer with the Crown Prince of Bahrain, Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa (not pictured), ahead of bilateral talks at 10 Downing Street, London. Picture date: Thursday June 19, 2025. (Image: PA Wire)
The Prime Minister said: “Iran’s nuclear programme is a grave threat to international security. Iran can never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon, and the US has taken action to alleviate that threat. The situation in the Middle East remains volatile and stability in the region is a priority. We call on Iran to return to the negotiating table and reach a diplomatic solution to end this crisis.”
The news comes as Reform UK leader Nigel Farage backed the US action. He said: “Reform UK stands behind the military actions of the USA overnight.
“Iran must not be allowed to have nuclear weapons; the future of Israel depends on it.”
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the US had taken “decisive action” against Iran.
Posting on X, she said: “By targeting Iran’s nuclear sites, the US has taken decisive action against a regime that fuels global terror and directly threatens the UK.
“Iranian operatives have plotted murders and attacks on British soil.
“We should stand firmly with the US and Israel.”
Sir Keir is expected to be working in Downing Street today where he will make a series of calls to allies. He is due to attend the NATO Summit in The Haguenext week.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the safety of British nationals in the region is paramount.
He told Sky News: “We support the prevention of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon.
“We had proposed a diplomatic course of action, as other European countries had done.
“The Iranians had rejected that.
“And I know people will be waking up this morning and they’ll be worried.
“They’ll want to know what this means. And I do want to give them reassurance that whilst the British government the UK, has not been involved in these attacks, we have been making extensive preparations for all eventualities, including how we look after British nationals in the region and how we get them out, and the assets we have in the region to protect British infrastructure, British bases, British personnel, if we need to do that.
“But from where we are now, what I think we need to do as the President, I believe himself has said is, ‘get back around the table’, Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, but we need a diplomatic process.”
Priti Patel (Image: Getty)
Dame Priti told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “America’s actions were absolutely essential.
“We have got to the stage, as we’ve seen in the last nine days or so, where Iran coming to the negotiation table simply was not happening in any constructive way. We had the IAEA report disclosing the extent to which Iran’s capabilities on nuclear were just increasing and they went beyond civilian capabilities.
“So these strikes were essential, I think the strikes from both Israel and from the United States – it’s quite clear that the American military was the only military capable of literally dropping those bombs on Fordo.”
The Witham MP added: “Iran is a terrorist state. They sponsor proxies.
“They harm us, for a start, they harm the UK and our interests, as well as chants of ‘death to America’ and their objective, which has always been to eliminate the state of Israel, which is simply not acceptable.”
