Fox, Liam

Digital Education Resource Archive

 GOV.UKDepartments Worldwide How government works Get involvedPublications Consultations Statistics News and communicationsSpeechSecretary of State speech atInternational Education StrategyeventTranscript of International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox'sspeech at an International Education Strategy event inLondon.From:Published 1 May 2019Department for International Trade and The Rt Hon Liam Fox MPDelivered on: 1 May 2019 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it wasdelivered)IntroductionThank you all very much for coming this evening - and to our leadsponsor HSBC, and our supporting sponsor Pearson for making thisevent possible.GOV.UK uses cookies to make the site simpler. Find out more about cookies or hide this messageHome Education, training and skillsSearchLet me start with a question. If I were to ask you to rank these sectors inorder of their estimated export contribution to the UK economy, with thegreatest at the top, what would you say?Insurance, Education, and Whisky. Any guesses?Well, it may surprise you to learn that based on the latest figures,Education would come top with £19.9 billion. The total export ofinsurance and pension services from the UK was £18.8 billion. AndWhisky exports were just £5 billion.I don’t think £5 billion is small beer - if you excuse the expression. As aproud Scot and whisky-lover, £5 billion is obviously a huge amount ofmoney. But it just shows how successful education is as an export.Now, drawing comparisons is always a minefield and I want to makeclear that while I’m quoting official figures, I’m not strictly comparing likewith like. But my point is a very simple one: education is an unsung heroof our UK exports and makes a massive contribution to our economy.The fact is that our education exports are a remarkable success story - ajewel in our economic crown - and it is a success we should beunapologetic about celebrating.Some 67% of the value of these exports come from higher education,much of it in the form of international students.Most of the countries on earth - some 160 - use UK internationalqualifications in their national secondary examinations. Thousands ofinternational schools use the UK’s K-12 curriculum - and almost 25,000students directly attend over 40 overseas UK schools.All but 15 of the world’s countries receive some sort of transnationaleducation services from UK universities.And of the world’s top 10 universities, 4 are in the UK, compared to 5 inthe United States and only one, ETH Zürich - in the rest of Europe. OurEducation Strategy thus builds on a remarkable record of success.However, we cannot rest on our laurels.The changing global education marketplaceBritain stands on the brink of a new era in our trading history. It is anopportunity we intend to seize as an outward looking Global Britain.The United Kingdom is a great, outwards looking trading nation. It is notonly in our history - it’s part of our make-up. Today, a key component ofthis is our services sector, we are one of the world’s largest serviceexporters - second only to the United States.The share of global GDP of the seven largest emerging economies -including China, India and Turkey - has been projected to increase fromaround 35% to nearly 50% by 2050.The global middle class is expected to reach 5.4 billion people by 2030,up from 3 billion in 2015.This seismic shift in economic and demographic power will rapidlychange opportunities in the global economy, driving demand forprecisely those skills and expertise in which the UK already excels.And our educational providers can be at the forefront of this shift,reaching out to seize the opportunities of a rapidly changing andexpanding global education market.Strategy outlineOur International Education Strategy is designed to achieve just this.As the Education Secretary has just outlined, we recognise that it isleaders like you - not government - that must be at the forefront of thisambition.That is why it is a sector-led Strategy, developed in cooperation witheducation providers across the UK to address the practical barriers youface, and finding the right tools to overcome them.Some education providers may feel they are not suited to takeadvantage of exporting opportunities, or lack the confidence orknowledge in how to pursue them.They may not have the information they need about how to tackle policyor regulatory barriers to access overseas markets, how to seek and getfinance, or even where to go for help.This Strategy is about overcoming these challenges. At its heart is anambitious goal of achieving an increase in the value of our educationexports to £35 billion per year.Partnership across governmentIt sets out a whole-of-government approach to put in place the practical,advisory and promotional support to further strengthen the UK’s positionat the forefront of global education: connecting international partners,opening markets and unlocking new opportunities in rapidly growingareas such as early years and EdTech.An early example is the digital learning company, Pearson, oursupporting sponsor here tonight. They have received an officialendorsement from the Thai government which allows BTECqualifications to be delivered in every vocational and higher institution inThailand, with the view to expand BTECs across 800 vocationalinstitutions in the country.And supported by the Department for International Trade, a delegationfrom the Thai Ministry of Education, visited Pearson in November 2018,to discuss future plans and to sign an agreement between Pearson, theMinistry for Education and trade bodies of Thailand to work together onBTEC implementation.Soft power benefits of education exportsSuccess stories like these are important: and not just for our economy.Promoting the UK’s education sector is not just about jobs and exportsgrowth.Education is the enemy of ignorance. It promotes understanding acrossborders. It is something that is universal: bridging barriers of country,language and politics. It nurtures new ideas, spurs innovation and opensminds. It is the building block of prosperous, creative and free societies.It is an end in itself - the building block that all civilisations have utilised.So this Strategy also recognises that the benefits of our educationexports extend, not merely to growing the exports, investment and jobsthe UK needs.It also extends to the wider benefits of growing the UK’s ‘soft power’:aiding our international collaboration, helping tackle global challengeslike poverty, and, in turn, strengthening our national security.ConclusionForging a new role for the United Kingdom on the world stage starts withrising to the exporting challenge - of which this Strategy and theeducation sector will form a key part.I am confident that, working across Government, educational institutionsand leaders like the ones in this room, we can rise to this challenge -ensuring that the future of the UK education sector is even moreoutstanding than it was in the past.The potential is there. So are the opportunities. And, with this Strategy,so are the tools.Now we need to build the network and relationships that will help realisethose opportunities. And that is what this event is all about. So over toyouPublished 1 May 2019Explore the topicEducation, training and skillsUK economyIs this page useful? Yes No Is there anything wrong with this page?Prepare your business or organisation forthe UK leaving the EUPrepare for EU Exit if you live in the UKLiving in Europe after the UK leaves theEUContinue to live in the UK after it leavesthe EUPrepare for EU ExitBenefitsBirths, deaths, marriages and careBusiness and self-employedChildcare and parentingCitizenship and living in the UKCrime, justice and the lawDisabled peopleDriving and transportEducation and learningEmploying peopleEnvironment and countrysideHousing and local servicesMoney and taxPassports, travel and living abroadVisas and immigrationWorking, jobs and pensionsServices and informationHow governmentworksDepartmentsWorldwideServicesGuidance andregulationNews andcommunicationsPolicy papers andconsultationsTransparency andfreedom of informationreleasesDepartments and policyHelp  Cookies  Contact  Terms and conditions  Rhestr o Wasanaethau CymraegBuilt by the Government Digital Service © Crown copyrightAll content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0, except where otherwisestated

Speech: Liam Fox: Secretary of State speech at International Education Strategy event: 1 May 2019

https://dera.ioe.ac.uk//33368/1/Secretary%20of%20State%20speech%20at%20International%20Education%20Strategy%20event%20-%20GOV.pdf

Speech: Liam Fox: Secretary of State speech at International Education Strategy event: 1 May 2019

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Digital Education Resource Archive