LOCAL MP David Chaytor today delayed the Chancellor's Pre-Budget statement to urge the Government to give all workers paid study leave.

As the nation waited for Gordon Brown to reveal the Government's plans for pensions, fuel duty and other key areas, the Bury North Labour backbencher took up 10 minutes of parliamentary time to introduce a Private Member's Bill that has little chance of becoming law.

However, he hopes the measure to introduce paid study leave for all workers could prompt ministers into action.

His proposal would entitle every British worker to a set number of paid working days off work each year to learn new skills.

In almost every other European Union country, employees have a statutory right to between one and two weeks a year paid education leave. Mr Chaytor, a former further education lecturer, said: "British workers should have the same chances to improve their skills as their European counterparts.

"On the whole, British companies have a poor record of investing in work place training for their employees, and what training there is is usually geared to highly skilled workers in professional jobs.

"I want to make sure that everyone -- from the shop floor to the boardroom -- has the same basic right to study leave.

"At the moment, work based training is a hit and miss affair. Some employers are better than others -- and some employees have large amounts of money invested in their career development.

"But the crucial problem is taking unpaid leave in order to study is something that most people simply cannot afford. Those who would benefit most from training are generally those who can least afford it.

"There is a huge reservoir of untapped talent out there. In my view it's time that we gave everyone the opportunity to enhance their skills throughout their working lives.

"Quite apart from the benefit this brings to individual workers, it is vital for our future economic performance.

"We will only thrive in the modern world if we can build a knowledge-based economy based on a highly skilled and motivated workforce.

"Work-based training should no longer been seen as a luxury or an optional extra -- it is a vital investment in our future."