Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Government for not opposing this motion and I thank the House for its widespread support for the spirt and terms of the motion. Apprenticeships have a vital role to play in Ireland's future. The outstanding apprentices whom we, at the Joint Committee on Education and Skills, and the Minister of State meet who represent the country at the Ireland Skills and World Skills events every year are testament to the impact apprentices can have on the labour force.

The truth, however, is that apart from that and apart from showing excellence, and it is important to show excellence, apprenticeships do not get the coverage they deserve. I will be constructive in my criticism of the promotion of apprenticeships. The Minister mentioned a website and Twitter. The Apprenticeship Council Twitter account is a corporate account. That is fine if the Apprenticeship Council wants to tell us about what the former Minister, Deputy Bruton, did for apprentices. I have no problem with that. If I am a young person looking to find an apprenticeship, however, I am not going to get information from the Apprentice Council Twitter account.

Turning to the website, I can find any of the information I want on the technical details of apprenticeships, the legal requirements, the fees etc. That is all there. If I go to the UK version of the website, it is very simple. It is "search for an apprenticeship". We need to get to that and away from the corporate websites promoting what corporate is doing. We need to make it something that is apprentice focused. The Twitter account is not apprentice focused.

I have no difficulty with SOLAS having a corporate Twitter account or promoting what is happening. That is fine but it needs to have a Twitter account that is geared to apprentices and the Twitter account I mentioned is not. The website is not either. I mean that in the most constructive way possible. That is what we are trying to get changes. I refer to this being apprentice focused. The apprentices who are online at home must be able to get the information they need in a crisp and accessible way. I know the Minister of State has contradicted us a bit on Germany and Austria, but the truth is we are not going to be able to reach what those countries are doing in short order. I know that but we have got to reach the perception of the status that apprenticeships have in those countries. Those are some of the most important industrialised countries in the world and the most important research countries in the world. We have to be there.

Our only interest is that that goal and that perception are met and done. As has been mentioned by many, apprenticeships in the construction sector have to happen. There is an issue with work, with small companies not being able to provide it and big companies not providing it when they should. We need many more apprentices in the construction sector to meet building targets and to get our people housed. There are major occupational shortages in areas such as shuttering, carpenters, shift managers, steel erectors, pipe layers, glaziers etc. Young people need a clear avenue to grasp the opportunities that are there and we need to provide them.

Work must begin now on ramping up the number of apprenticeships across the board to meet demand. For too long the Irish education system has leaned on academic achievement as a way of career and development opportunity. That is all of us. We all aspire for our children to go to college and to get the diploma, the degree or whatever it is, but we have got to get that message out there that the level 8 apprenticeship is a degree. It is exactly equivalent to a degree and it is another way of doing it. If that message is out there and seeps in, then things will change radically and employers will also become more interested.

The time has come to take apprenticeships seriously as a way of further boosting the economy. In preparation for the challenges we face with Brexit, in housing and in meeting the skills shortages in hospitality and healthcare, apprenticeships must be placed in the position they deserve. I appeal to the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission while the Ceann Comhairle is here. The House of Commons has a fantastic system. Deputy Barry has mentioned political interference. It has nothing to do with politics whatsoever. It is done in Britain within the structure of the Civil Service and that is what needs to happen here. The Houses of the Oireachtas needs to send out a message, whether it is to people who are learning to be chefs or learning accountancy or financial management. Those types of apprenticeships are offered in the House of Commons. We need to get to that situation because that is one way we will send out that signal that things have changed utterly for the better for young people.

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