Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for the presentations. I note that Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board, WWETB, is developing a nearly zero energy building, NZEB, centre of excellence and Limerick Institute of Technology is working with it to develop the training content for the programme. This will upskill electricians, plumbers, blocklayers and others. It is terrible that WWETB has to fight for money despite the work that it is doing. This is the wave of the future and funding will be necessary if we are to address fuel poverty and improve our energy security.

While SOLAS has started new apprenticeships in auctioneering and property services, what actions is it taking to create them in services that improve the quality of the houses being auctioned, rented or sold? Building standards are still under-regulated and inspected, although there is self-certification, while there is a severe lack of trained professionals to do the work required. I know that many of the people who work in the areas of renovation, retrofitting and energy efficiency - the new green areas of the economy - have not been trained in Ireland and must travel elsewhere to acquire that expertise. What is SOLAS doing at regional level to upskill in and support the retrofit sector? What is its policy in that area? Has it started to build on the pioneering work of Waterford and Wexford ETB in the area of retrofitting, especially considering the requirement to meet current and incoming EU energy efficiency and NZ targets? I note that the action plan to expand apprenticeship and traineeship in Ireland 2016 to 2020 includes a target to have 67 apprenticeship programmes in place by the end of 2020 in new industry areas. There is a clear upward trend, but are we preparing the apprentices for the reality of our changing economy and where we need to go? Regarding the €120 million allocated for apprenticeships in 2018 and the €34.6 million allocated for traineeships to 2020, what is the breakdown in terms of how much has been invested in climate mitigation or adaptation measures, including energy efficiency measures, as compared to the level of investment in fossil fuel employment? I believe there is talk of the European Social Fund which funds the new apprenticeship and traineeship fund being used to upskill fossil fuel workers in Germany and the Czech Republic. Has the Department approached anyone at EU level or prepared any draft plan for the midlands to avail of such funding opportunities?

I am glad to see moves in the right direction towards gender balance, but SOLAS's submission does state the proportion of apprentices who are women is still 1%. I am glad to hear that there is a move to encourage them to move beyond certain areas such as beauty therapy and hairdressing which quite clearly are saturated markets that are vulnerable to cyclical dips in the economy. Care work is also an industry in which there are very poor pay levels and conditions. Is there, for example, an Athena SWAN award equivalent for institutions and businesses in this area? In addition, what departmental actions are being taken in the light of the fact that just 2.75% of apprentices declare a disability? Furthermore, is there an apprenticeship expo? Could this become a compulsory part of the transition year school programme?