Albert Ellis is Chief Executive Office of Harvey Nash, the global professional recruitment and IT Outsourcing consultancy.

The government’s plan to implement 400 business-led academies by 2010 is a bit behind with only two of London’s key financial institutions - UBS and KPMG - currently involved in London. The idea of global business sponsoring UK education challenges our social instincts and also all our prejudices as Management Today said ‘they’ve already got our football teams, now they want our kids’ minds too…’

Whatever your politics, we need to do something to turn around the skills gap in the UK which is indirectly contributing to some of the outsourcing, offshoring and professional migration. The schools system is failing the weak and vulnerable in our society and Sir Digby Jones, Gordon Brown’s skills envoy, estimates that over 7 million adults are functionally illiterate in the UK today.

I would imagine the thought of more foreigners to fill this gap arriving into the UK is a source of real angst for the Left. Hard left, hard choices.

Not many people know Harvey Nash are involved in the City Academy initiative. Harvey Nash Public Services Director and Practice head, Noorzaman Rashid is a Trustee of the Edutrust, another organisation looking to drive quality and funding into the inner cities. Check out www.edutrust.org if you want to know more.