Mr. Eddie Taaffe:

I could not agree more. We need more apprenticeships and skilled workers. Contractors are constrained in the amount of work they can take on, both the small refurbishment work they do for us and the larger projects, because of that. A structured look needs to be taken at school leavers, what they want to do and how there is an alternative career path for them if they want to take up these skills. At the end of the day, it is a good job and can be a well-paid job. There needs to be more awareness of this. In some respects, working in construction has got some negative PR over the past number of years. We do not see it that way, though. We see it as a good job and getting a skill. The more we can emphasise that, the better.

On the other side of that, as a sector and as a society, we need to use and embrace more modern methods of construction as well. There is a lot of technology that can allow fabrication of housing components in a factory setting, which is an easier and, for want of a better term, more comfortable place for people to work. It is not weather dependent and people can become very productive and very skilled in that environment, which should speed up house construction and, more importantly, improve productivity. For example, we are piloting a 3D modern methods of construction, MMC, system in Wexford. It is out to tender at the moment. The houses will be built in 3D format, come in, and be dropped on site and assembled there. We are piloting this to see how it will work. It is something we need to be considering because it gives people a real skill and moves the construction sector from a perceived cold and wet environment into a factory environment that will increase productivity and, I hope, attract more people into the industry.