A PRESTWICH businessman has played a pivotal role in the publication of a report underlining urgent action to tackle the UK's skills shortage crisis.

And Harry Johnston believes he has been instrumental in persuading the Government to adopt a scheme to give 14-year-old schoolchildren day release at technical colleges.

Mr Johnston, who runs his thriving Heywood Road-based R &G Construction business, was part of a British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) "think tank" charged with addressing the problem of widespread skills shortages throughout industry.

He spent a total of 14 months travelling to and from London as the 25-page BCC Skills in Business report took shape. The document has been published and could help shape future Government strategy in boosting workplace skills.

Mr Johnston is an associate member of the BCC which invited him to become part of its high-powered skills taskforce team.

"Our main aim was to come up with some solutions to skills shortages," he said. "There are shortages in skilled tradesmen, not just in building but right across industry".

Part of his taskforce duties involved researching and publishing a working paper for inclusion in the finished report. And it was one of his major recommendations which has now been taken on board by the Government.

Mr Johnston, a member of Prestwich Business Forum, explained: "Bury South MP Ivan Lewis has announced that apprentices can start at the age of 14 by getting day release to technical colleges.

"I've been championing this for ten years to different ministers, including Ivan Lewis. I'm sure I've had a very big influence in that decision being taken".

The businessman also advocates third year college students being allocated to training sites, enabling more college space and facilities to be devoted to younger students.

"The Government could get involved in these training sites with such people as housing associations. Things like special needs units could be built by the apprentices. At at the end of the day, companies like mine could tender to manage these sites."

Mr Johnston is also anxious for greater cash resources to be devoted to apprentices to encourage training.

"We're talking about people aged 18-19, some of whom are married and have a family. I believe the present funding packages are wrong.

"Many cannot live off a first year apprenticeship scheme and we daren't put in a two-tier system whereby someone starting between the ages of 16-18 get a different level of pay for doing the same job. There should be an additional amount of funding to top up their apprenticeship".

Mr Johnston began his career in the building trade at 15 and four years later launched his own business which today enjoys a £4 million turnover.

He plans to retire later this year and this will allow him to devote more time to building industry-related matters.

Commenting on his hopes for the Skills in Business report, Mr Johnston continued: "I'm sure certain aspects of the document won't be liked by the Government. But at the end of the day, they need to look at the whole report and implement a large majority of the recommendations. This has been put together by business people from right across the spectrum.

"This report is about the problems of training people and I was proud to be involved in it. We need to fix the problems of skills shortages now and what's in place is a five year programme".