Sánchez highlights the Government's commitment to education and vocational training to guarantee equal opportunities

Universidad Laboral, Gijón (Asturias)

The head of the Executive took advantage of his visit to the Universidad Laboral de Gijón to convey a message of tolerance towards the LGBTI community and to underline the Government's commitment to respect for sexual diversity and the implementation of measures that contribute to curbing the increase in hate crimes in Spain.

"A false accusation cannot prevent us from seeing the reality that many people suffer because of their sexual orientation", said Sánchez in relation to the false accusation of a homophobic attack in the Malasaña neighbourhood of Madrid.

In terms of education, the President of the Government of Spain highlighted the Executive's commitment to reforming the educational model in Spain, which consolidates dual Vocational Training to guarantee "a quality education that allows citizens to be critical, free and autonomous in order to understand the world in which we live".

"The new Vocational Training Law is not just another law because it is a law of the country, as it represents a profound modernisation of our educational and productive model", Sánchez stressed.

The President of the Government of Spain stressed the cross-cutting nature of the new regulation, which represents an opportunity in the country for young people, workers and companies. "This is a law of the country, a transformative law, a law for the future that puts young people at the forefront," he remarked.

The new Vocational Training Law, approved by the Government in the Council of Ministers, reinforces the commitment of the educational offer to digitalisation, internationalisation, entrepreneurship and sustainability as key factors for economic recovery. "To talk about education and vocational training is to talk about the future, about our young people, about equal opportunities and about activating the social lift", stressed Sánchez.

The approval of this law reflects the Government's commitment to Vocational Training as one of the basic pillars for the transformation of the country and highlights the willingness to listen, dialogue and agreement of the Executive, which has relied on the consensus of regional governments, entities, associations, employers and citizens to configure the new regulation.

More than 200,000 new places and unprecedented investment

Foto: Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la BellacasaThe new regulation, which is part of the Government's overall education reform project, sets out the creation of 200,000 new vocational training places by 2023, more than half of which are already available, and consolidates the creation of 10 new qualifications and 15 specialisation courses.

"The Vocational Training Law, together with the new Universities Law and the development of the LOMLOE, represent an unprecedented investment in education in our country", said the president, who highlighted "the long process of dialogue and consensus with the educational community, social agents and regional governments to shape this new regulation".

Sánchez also stressed the Government's investment effort in education. The more than two billion euros for scholarships for the 2021/2022 academic year and the almost 5.5 billion euros earmarked for vocational training for the 2022-2025 period are clear proof of the Executive's commitment to education as a key pillar of economic recovery.

"If we want Spain to move forwards on the path to a fair recovery, there is no better recipe than investing in education, and that is what this Government is doing. Investing in education is investing in the future of this country, which is why we are making the greatest investment in this area in our history", stressed the head of the Executive.

A VT Law that adjusts professional profiles to companies

Foto: Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la BellacasaThe new Vocational Training Law consolidates a single, flexible and accreditable training offer, aimed at both students and workers and with 5.474 billion euros allocated to be implemented between 2022 and 2025, of which 1.55 billion euros comes from the European funds of the Recovery Plan.

The regulation establishes dual vocational training that will guarantee access for all students to a period of training and work experience in the company. Specifically, general vocational training will have a work experience period of between 25% and 35%, while intensive vocational training will have between 35% and 50%.

The renewal of the law strengthens the role of the regional governments in education, as they will be able to adapt training to the reality of the productive fabric of their territories and introduce their own training complements.

It also regulates the relationship between vocational education and training and university education, facilitating joint project work and the smooth transition between the two education systems in both directions. In addition, the law improves the accreditation process of professional skills acquired through work experience and non-formal training.

Non official translation