Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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We will move on to round 2. Anybody else who wants to contribute again may do so. I thank the delegates for the presentation. It was really informative.

The consensus among members and the representatives is that we should get rid of the stereotype surrounding apprenticeships. In a previous role, I launched a few documents on apprenticeships, the need to get more people involved, and getting rid of the unfortunate stigmatising belief of many mammies and daddies that apprenticeships are not the best route for their children.

In my area of Limerick, a company called Carelon has teamed up with a local secondary school to do STEM projects. It has committed not only to giving the school equipment but also to fixing it when it goes wrong, giving training on it and working with TY students. There are many such companies. Carelon has done a very good job and Johnson & Johnson is doing something similar. It would be good to develop this initiative in a way that employers would drive it a little more rather than having just a few companies involved. As Deputy Bruton said, somebody looking for an apprenticeship should not have to knock on many doors. What I propose would entail approaching just one to see what is available.