The Labour administration must ensure that the training needs of employees are met, according to an industry body.

Commenting in response to the release of a government consultation entitled Raising Expectations: Enabling the System to Deliver, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) said that many of the proposed reforms, such as giving local authorities a greater strategic role for young people, should help to ensure that more employees get the skills they require.

However, the congress added that, with two-fifths of staff not receiving any regular training at work, there still remains a need to get more employers to offer apprenticeships and training opportunities.

"It’s vital that as well as meeting the skills needs of employers, more individual employees are helped to get new skills under these new arrangements," stated TUC general secretary Brendan Barber.

Representing almost seven million employees, the TUC describes itself as "the voice of Britain at work".