Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome this debate. We have made huge progress in apprenticeships in recent years. Back in 2015, there were just 8,000 people in apprenticeships. By 2019, this had risen to 16,000 and today the figure is 23,000. This is a dramatic transformation.

Contrary to what the two Deputies now leaving the Chamber have just said, the quality of the apprenticeships is increasingly being improved and strengthened as we go. Over 12 of the 60 apprenticeships are at level 7 or higher, with some at levels 8, 9 and 10. These are high-quality programmes for improving people's careers.

The failure to reform the leaving certificate over many years has constrained our ability to develop this really important part of the future of work. The OECD has described Ireland's leaving certificate as wholly unfit for purpose and as designing an education for people that would not fit in with the world they were entering. The OECD, the foremost authority, said this about our leaving certificate. We have been too slow to reform it. I welcome the reform that is now starting and I hope it is accelerated.

Blended learning and earning as you learn are a great way to learn, not only when one leaves school but also as part of a lifelong learning strategy. We need to see more employers buy into this approach. Even at 23,000, it is less than 1% of the 2.5 million people who are now employed in this economy. The latter figure is an extraordinary achievement but the 1% must significantly change over the coming years. We need to sell that message.

It is disappointing that the public service has been among the slowest to enter the apprenticeship field. The public service has many needs across health and other sectors where we could see the development of hands-on learning, for example, to help children and older people with special needs. There are so many areas where the apprenticeship would fit in perfectly. People would be learning through practical experience. The grant is welcome but the Minister of State needs to do a deep dive into these sectors, including the multinational companies which have been slow to step up and participate in these apprenticeship programmes. The Minister of State and Minister are on the right track but I strongly urge them to rattle the cage of the public service and some of the traditional employers and sectors that have not bought into this.

It is welcome that the CAO now provides a link to the apprenticeship scheme but we need to go beyond that. I welcome the announcement today that the Department is seeking to develop blended courses between further education and training and the higher education sector, so there is a more seamless process.

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