Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our guests. This is a very important subject. As the CEO of the county council, Ms Delaney, said, 15 years have been being compressed into a few years and we are racing to catch up.

I will keep my questions short and I ask the witnesses to keep their replies short because time is limited. Funding of €20 million has been announced for retrofitting. Will Mr. Scheer indicate the potential number of retrofits that may be needed in the four midland counties?

My other question also relates to retrofitting and is for the ETB. The skilled labour required for retrofitting includes plasterers, plumbers, electricians, window fitters and so on. What survey has been done to assess that? Is the ETB planning on running short courses or apprenticeships since, for instance, plumbers are trained over four years, as are plasterers?