Hutt defends education funding

Jane Hutt is to produce a higher education action plan this autumn

Education Minister Jane Hutt has said £31m extra per year was being put into higher education in Wales after a report urged more investment.

The review, led by Prof Merfyn Jones, warned the economic success of Wales could be at risk without extra money.

Ms Hutt announced plans for a "virtual" university for the south Wales valleys.

She also gave the go-ahead for a Federal College to be established to provide more provision through the medium of Welsh.

The review, by Bangor University vice-chancellor Prof Jones and his team, considered the purpose and role of higher education, in the second part of its report.

The first phase, on student debt and widening access, was presented to the education minister last year.

The new document, published on Monday, expressed concern about a funding gap in higher education in Wales compared to England and Scotland.

It concluded: "Closing the gap may take a number of years and is particularly challenging in light of the current economic climate. However, on this hangs nothing less than the future reputation and prosperity of Wales."

The report warned that the skill levels of people living in the south Wales valleys were the lowest in Wales.

Ms Hutt told assembly members the new university for the area was a key element of a "new HE (higher education) manifesto and agenda for Wales".

She said: "I'm delighted to be able to announce that we are now ready, in the coming academic year, to begin funding new HE provision in the heads of the Valleys.

"This is exactly what I meant by a renewed effort to widen participation which I hope will become a model of collaboration between HE and FE (further education) institutions to the benefit of local communities."

The "virtual" university will begin operating on a very small scale this September, and then expand each year.

It will initially provide about 80 places through workplace and community based programmes, as well as at the campuses of the universities and FE colleges.

Addressing the funding concerns about higher education in Wales in general, Ms Hutt said: "We are delivering extra funding at a time when the public purse is not going to be delivering extra funding - a £31m per year increase in funding to higher education."

And she insisted there was "a great deal" higher education bodies could do to eliminate "inefficient duplication" of courses and collaborate to provide better education opportunities.

'Step change'

The minister also told AMs she fully supported the ideas, proposals and concepts noted in Prof Robin Williams' report, published on Monday.

That report said a new body to oversee Welsh-medium higher education should be created by September 2010.

It would not award degrees or appoint teaching staff of its own, but work with existing higher education institutions.

Ms Hutt said the Coleg Ffederal would be a "step change" in Welsh medium higher education provision.