The Financial Services Skills Council (FSSC) is launching a programme to solve the skills issues faced by financial services companies.

The Skills Bill is a national scheme spread across 18 months, which intends to improve the performance of businesses in the financial services sector.

The FSSC plans to quiz employers on what skills they require from their workforce, and review the education and skills provision currently offered to staff in conjunction with relevant training bodies.

The research will be published in late 2007. FSSC Chief Executive Teresa Sayers commented: “This is an opportunity for the financial services industry to transform the way skills are developed and delivered in the UK.

“If employers want to ensure that the skills they need from their people are the skills that they get, they must get involved now and have their say.”

For further information, visit www.fssc.org.uk/skillsbill. The online employer questionnaire will be available from 8 March 2006.