Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 18 October 2023
295. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science for an update on apprentice placements (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45659/23]
View answerThe apprenticeship system is currently responding to a marked increase in demand over the past four years, driven by overall tertiary sector demand, Covid-related training backlogs, and growing demand for skills delivered through apprenticeship. Given these delays, it is the Government’s ambition to right-size apprenticeship capacity in line with the labour market demands, the ambitions of the Action Plan for Apprenticeship, and to support wider Government objectives under Housing For All, retrofitting, and green skills.
My Department is working closely with SOLAS and the ETBs to continue to increase training capacity, resulting in 13,000 craft places delivered in 2022. It is intended to deliver some 15,300 places in total this year. Significant funding has been provided in Budget 2024 to further accelerate and intensify the delivery of increased training capacity.
My Department is working on an ongoing basis with SOLAS, the National Apprenticeship Office, the Higher Education Authority, the ETB sector, and union representatives. Through weekly meetings, we are working to devise and successfully implement a funded set of actions to address this very significant and important issue.
