Pauline Tully (Sinn Fein)

Good afternoon to everyone. By the time we get to the bottom of the list, most of the questions have already been asked but I echo the concerns of my colleagues around low wages. I was recently talking to a young man of 23 who decided to take up an apprenticeship, but receiving only €7 or €8 per hour made it very difficult for him. I am also concerned about the delays in phase 2. Mr. Grady said that apprentices should not be penalised in respect of their wages if there is a delay but, unfortunately, that is not what is happening. Many were left on the lower wages until they had completed phase 2.

In his opening statement, Mr. Brownlee talked about the growth in participation by under-represented groups, including the Traveller community, ethnic minorities, women and so forth. How do the organisations target people within those groups and do they measure it? When they target people to take up an apprenticeship, do they then ensure that they complete it? We have a very low workforce participation rate among people with disabilities in this country. I would welcome anything that can bring people with disabilities into the workforce and ensure that they stay in it. Traditionally, participation of women in the craft industries would have been quite low. Have we seen an increase in that or are the increases in female participation in other types of apprenticeships, such as accounting technician, for example?