Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We have a worrying dropout rate in colleges, particularly in certain courses in certain areas, where all qualifying applicants are being accepted. Many young people go to college, only to find out that it does not work out for them and that they would have been more successful in an apprenticeship. It sounds like it will take between five and seven years before the numbers increase in any dramatic way and before we begin to be like other countries. Next Wednesday we will celebrate international women's day and it is an enormous pity that this Government gives no priority to women and girls in the area of apprenticeships. We are not just talking about mañana, we are talking about years and years from now.

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