Mr. Alan Nuzum:

I mentioned it twice so that it would have an impact. I did not want to talk too much at the start but value is key. At its most basic level, we must consider the cost of the training. Whereas the subsidy for companies is not huge it is enough for it to make the investment in training a sensible decision. I mentioned the 50-50 model earlier but once the network has covered its general costs the typical subsidy that a company is getting is probably between 20% and 30%. The companies are paying the lion's share. In our research we found that one of the main reasons that companies engage with the Skillnets network initially is to save some money but once they are in it, the top reason they stay is because of the quality of the training.

Value is also very important in terms of job seekers. All training provided by Skillnets network is free to jobseekers. I mentioned earlier that jobseekers may receive training alongside those in employment. For a jobseeker to access training in that context on their own bat they would have had to pay to participate in an open course. We have also developed a very strong and effective relationship with the Department of Social Protection to ensure that jobseekers' participation in the wide variety of courses that we provide free of charge to them does not impact on their benefits. That has not been an easy result to get. It has involved a great of deal of collaboration and negotiation with the Department of Social Protection but I must take my hat off to them, having seen the demand by jobseekers for the types of courses we are doing, particularly with the progression outcomes I have outlined, the Department sees the value of them.

Quality is about the relevance of the training to the person and to the company. It is important to get the two elements in balance. What the company wants effectively is training that will make an employee more productive, able to do cross-functional work and to take on new work. Therefore it improves the company's competitiveness and impacts on its survival. From the point of view of the employee, he or she is looking at employability and perhaps has one eye on his or her current job but another on the ifs of being out of a job. It is a serious challenge for a jobseeker to make a choice on a career area. When one looks at the vast and increasing array of training and education opportunities available to jobseekers, either publicly funded or what they fund themselves, how can they answer the question, "Is this what I need in order to get a job?". If one is participating in training that has been designed by and is in demand by enterprise, it goes a long way to answering that question. The Skillnets networks have a quality mark as they are designed and endorsed by enterprise.

Access is another key element. At its most basic level one will see from the list of our networks that many are based in regions around the country, from the north west to south Kerry to Galway to the south east and so on. We bring training to where people are. The individual companies in the SME sector would not have enough people to justify the cost of drafting in a trainer, so the option was to send staff to major centres, such as Dublin, Cork or Galway, however our services makes training accessible. We have not just one network, but 55 networks with access for all companies within all the networks to training in other networks and access for jobseekers not just in their local area but if they wish to travel to sector specific training, it is there as there are hundreds of different courses available on our websites. That was a long answer to a short question.

In response to the question on the expert group, I have been a member of the expert group since 2007. We find it an excellent direction finder for us in terms of what is going on out there. We, through our networks have been able to provide input to all of the sectoral reports that the expert group will have commissioned. That helps us to get our message across. The quality of the research they produce is of such a high order that we rely on it and it certainly has not let us down. I fully endorse their work.