Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I fully agree with the Deputy on his passionate contribution around apprenticeships. While "snobby" may or may not be the right word, we have had too narrow or elitist a view towards educational opportunities. It is this idea that if people go directly from school to university, they are a success, and another pathway is somewhat lesser. That is, of course, not true at all.

Apprenticeships are third level. They are just another way of getting there. People can get paid as they learn; they can earn and learn. They can get practical experience as they are based in the workplace for some of the time and are based in the college or an early education setting for others. It is working for thousands of people every year and it works for employers too. We are with the Deputy on this.

The CAO website has now been changed. It used to be kind of hidden away. People were not told about apprenticeships. The apprenticeships are now up on the CAO website. There is a dedicated guidance counselling helpline for anyone who wishes to find out more, be they parent, teacher or student. We will keep at this and keep promoting them together.

On the MTU campus and capacity issues, I am happy to look into that further. We are obviously investing a lot of capital in our technological universities. MTU has been doing a really good job since it started. Now that it has started, it is about growing it further and improving its facilities. I met its representatives relatively recently on this and I will keep engaging to see what the opportunities are.

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