Mr. Ian Talbot:

There have been some very successful training vouchers in the past and also some that were not so successful. For example, I am not sure how well the current digital voucher is going around the country. The big thing here is that we need to be flexible. If something is not working and not getting out the door, we need to recognise that there is obviously no demand for it. Communication is also key. One of the many challenges we have is that we represent 10,000-odd businesses around the country. There is a huge number of businesses that are not engaged with their local chamber. It goes back to the point that was raised earlier as to whether chambers should be part of the system. If we were part of the system, it might be different getting that message out but there are also reasons we are not. It is about getting the message out to companies that there is stuff to help. As the Senator will know well, in most small businesses, you are constrained on time and trying to keep the lights on and so do not have time for this. Ensuring the message filters down so that people get the really important stuff is key, as is flexibility. It is really key that we keep evolving things. If things are not working, we no longer have two or three years to reflect and say that did not work and we need to do something differently. We nearly need to review every single year. We consistently call for local authorities to have more authority. Perhaps if greater authority was held locally, there might be more delivery for businesses in the local area. That is another key area to look at.