Buy-your-own job training Bill due in Queen's Speech

Ministers are considering a new Bill to introduce a training and education vouchers scheme that would allow people to buy their own training.

There was speculation in Westminster last night that a measure to extend current pilot schemes for the vouchers could be added to the raft of legislation the Cabinet is finalising for the Queen's Speech in November.

The Cabinet yesterday broadly approved a series of measures for the 1995- 6 legislative session, which is also likely to include a new nursery-vouchers scheme and a Bill enacting reforms of divorce law.

A nursery vouchers Bill could itself be amended to add clauses allowing experimentation with the voucher principle for school-leavers and others seeking training.

No legislation is needed to afford choice for those seeking training through employers or Training and Education Councils.

But legislation would be needed if the options bought with vouchers were to include courses, for example, at colleges for further education.

Other likely Bills include:

nA Bill to enact the immediate proposals in the cross-media ownership Green Paper published this week.

nAn asylum and immigration Bill to tighten controls on bogus asylum-seekers and illegal immigrants.

nA criminal justice Bill to change the law on disclosure to the defence of proscution evidence.

nA Bill to facilitate the fast rail link between the Channel tunnel and London.

nA five-yearly armed forces Bill to renew the Government's authority to maintain a standing army.

nA new Bill to give the Heath Service Ombudsman the right to investigate complaints about a doctor's clinical judgement.

nA Bill to curb the soaring costs of legal aid.

The Government is also to step up the momentum of its policy decision to publish Bills in draft form well before they are considered by Parliament, to improve the technical quality of measures before they are legislated on.