Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

If this Bill does as it promises, it will be a step forward. However, there is a real disconnect at the moment between SOLAS, ETBs, and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. This is causing issues with apprenticeships that do not need to be there. It is making it harder for apprentices to do the vital work they need to do, especially in house building. It is very important that the work on the right licensing and registration is brought up-to-date. For far too long, these issue have not been tackled and, therefore, it is important that they are now.

I also want to raise the potential for an ETB site for apprentices to be built on the northside of Cork city. They are currently accommodated in the Munster Technological University, MTU, campus in Bishopstown, which is at near capacity and has no room to build on.

There are great opportunities to build a centre like that in places like Hollyhill and Ballyvolane, which will be accessible to everyone but rooted in communities where apprenticeships have a much higher uptake. Deputy Ó Laoghaire and I met with the management in MTU and looked at the fabulous work being done there. There are, however, major issues concerning capacity and investment. There is an opportunity here. People say, "If you can't see it, you can't be it". There is no third level campus on the northside of Cork city. There is nowhere for students to see people progressing beyond their leaving certificate examinations. We must tackle this.

I also examined adaptation grants recently. There are great disparities in the amounts being awarded for these grants and the cost of the work. External issues, such as the cost of construction inflation and the high cost of insurance, have impacted. If this Bill reduces those costs, it would be good for everyone. We will, though, have to wait and see. Many of the accidents driving up insurance costs on sites do not even occur because of negligence. They occur because of the heights people have to work at, poor weather conditions and workers being under pressure trying to meet timelines to maximise profits.

One of the solutions is to examine modern building techniques and technologies. These could be transformative for the industry in reducing costs, delivering houses safely and increasing capacity. We could also speed up the whole process and see homes delivered. We need to do more in this area. The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, is taking years to approve new technologies that are being used in other jurisdictions. The Minister needs to examine this context in conjunction with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coveney. I say this because we wish to see homes built faster. I will give an example of why this is important. I dealt recently with a lady living in a house for 25 years who never had a problem. Contractors from a retrofitting company were brought in and now she has damp and leaks. If this company had been registered and licensed properly, she would not have these problems.

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