The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (www.oecd.org) has warned in a report that highly skilled jobs and industries are at risk because UK workers do not have the “crucial training” to cope with “an era of intense global competition”.

The OECD added that “specialised workers across the world work together on individual products as part of global supply chains, meaning jobs are more exposed than ever to outsourcing”.

It went on to say that the UK could lose its edge in high-tech sectors, with jobs disappearing as a result, adding that UK workers’ “skills characteristics struggle to meet the requirements of the technologically advanced sectors”.

The OECD is calling on the UK “to better align skills characteristics with industries’ skills requirements, so as to maintain or deepen specialisation in these industries. The possibility of offshoring certain tasks increases the importance of some skills and makes others obsolete.”