Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Apprenticeships are a huge issue and we must provide encouragement in any way we can to make sure that apprenticeships are available to people. Many will have noticed the difficulty in hiring the services of skilled tradespeople such as electricians, plumbers or carpenters for home repairs, which are also in very short supply.

There are, however, so many areas where we see young people being unfairly treated. I wish to address one of the issues that affects the younger population in rural Ireland, namely, the difficulty they are facing in obtaining driving licences. They cannot get to their apprenticeships or their jobs, especially in rural Ireland, because they cannot get driving tests. Consequently, tenders in respect of courses and job opportunities are axed. Many individuals find themselves in a predicament whereby they secure employment but are unable to accept the position due to the absence of public transportation in their areas, coupled with the unavailability of driving tests. A young lady in the countryside of Kilmacsimon recently secured a job in Kinsale. Due to the lack of public transport options, however, she is dependent on her parents for her commute to work. Regrettably, she has been informed that she may not be able to undertake a driving test until January 2024. That is astonishing amount of time, nearly eight or nine months. When I recently brought up the situation with driving tests in west Cork, I had a Fine Gael Senator tell me I was away with the birds, that it was not a problem. That will tell you how out of touch that Senator is. This is a problem for many young people. Furthermore, the same girl has aspirations of attending a college in September for upskilling, for which she will require means of transportation. This predicament highlights the importance of addressing the challenges faced by young people. It is the same with trying to get a national car test, NCT, for a car or a driving licence. It is shocking for these young people.

Earlier today I mentioned here an issue about CoAction and young people in the Beara Peninsula who have intellectual disabilities. Their transport to attend CoAction's rehabilitative training, RT, education programme tomorrow is to be taken from them, which is very unfair and a matter that needs the Minister of State's intervention.

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