Skills gap must be top target for Westminster says sector

Manufacturers voted tackling the skills gap the most essential area where industry needed help. Business friendly tax and regulation were named the second most influential levers the government could deliver for growth. Improving access to finance came third in the wish lists of almost 170 senior manufacturing staff surveyed by WM. Seven in ten respondents blamed a historic lack of government support as a key reason for manufacturing's relative decline as a percentage of GDP. One respondent said: "Most wouldn't know what a lathe was if it dropped on their head." International competition from emerging economies and a high cost base were also linked to the sector's struggles. The survey was carried out in conjunction with political information and publishing firm DODs and is reported in full in the Manufacturing Summit Boardroom Report included in WM's June issue.