Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin (Wicklow-Wexford, Sinn Fein)

I thank the witnesses for their contributions. A recent meeting in Waterford with the IBEC south-east regional executive was very enlightening in many aspects. It was great. Traditionally, we have looked down our noses at apprenticeships. There was a huge drive towards universities back 30 years ago. We are just realising now that we need to go back to basics and we need a lot of basic skills. As Deputy O'Connell pointed out, eight out of ten employers now have skills gaps. That is a huge number. I know one gap is in the area of housing, where there is a crisis, and in bus drivers. We have a massive crisis in the countryside with children not having bus places. One of the arguments coming back to us is that the companies do not have the drivers. They have to have specially trained drivers. That can be done through the education and training boards. I raised this issue before in Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board, WWETB. This issue needs to be addressed with Bus Éireann as well. Do the witnesses agree that we need basic skills such as bus driving?

The housing crisis, which Deputy McGettigan mentioned, is the number one issue at the moment. Do the witnesses see any special areas where we need those skills? There is obviously a shortage of plumbers, electricians, builders and retrofitters. These are great career paths for a young person. There is very good money to be made in retrofitting now. The insulation works being done on houses offer a great job opportunity. Will the witnesses expand a little on that as it relates to the housing crisis?

There is also a shortage of funding for the apprenticeship fund in many ways. If we want to have lifelong learning, money needs to be put into that and part of the fund needs to be ring-fenced for lifelong learning. We all have to change. Becoming a TD, there is a lot of change from one's previous job. However, as regards making it more attractive, do the witnesses agree that the payment for apprentices may not be attractive enough for a lot of young people? In the countryside - for example, in Wexford and Wicklow which I represent - transport is sometimes a big challenge. If a young fella or girl wants to get to the centre in Waterford and is travelling down from Gorey, they need proper bus transport. We do not necessarily have a great public transport but even something like a voucher for travel or that type of a system would make it a bit easier.

Being a traditionally male domain, it is great to see more women becoming involved in apprenticeships. It was also great to see that the Rose of Tralee has an electrical background. We need to expand apprenticeship way beyond what we have. Germany has over 300 apprenticeships, including in banking and all types of advanced areas.

Do the witnesses agree on changing the payment model for young people to make it a bit more attractive, maybe with vouchers thrown in? In terms of the housing crisis, what areas need to be addressed most urgently as regards skills shortages? I would appreciate the witnesses' thoughts on those two questions.