Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. To answer her question, there is a single portal,www.apprenticeships.ie, which is quite all-encompassing and gives as much information as is readily available on the range of apprenticeships. The Minister and I have encouraged people at every opportunity to access it.

On the question on what is being done to attract more young people to apprenticeships, the national promotional campaign Generation Apprenticeship has been under way since May 2017. It has been designed to influence parents, teachers and potential apprentices on the career paths and further educational opportunities arising from apprenticeship programmes. I refer to the rolling out of the 2020 Generation Apprenticeship competition at second level, involving 156 second level schools, youthreach centres and community training centres, and the launch of the apprenticeship jobs platform in April 2019 to enhance the accessibility of apprenticeship job vacancies. The Minister and I agree with the Deputy and we have said publicly on many occasions that more has to be done to promote apprenticeships as a viable career path and a way of obtaining a real and meaningful job. The days of apprenticeships being the poor relation should be consigned to history forever.

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