Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this topic. In my brief contribution I will focus on three or four issues.

There was a very welcome announcement in November 2022 regarding the go-ahead, the green light, for the Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board plan for a new adult campus to be called the college of the future. I have been following up on that assiduously. The last answer I got was that a preliminary business case would be carried out in September. That was confirmed today by the Minister. My specific question is whether that is on target to be done by September. As for the changes that have been made to the public spending code and bringing it back to three stages, what overall spriocdháta, what overall date, has the Department now in mind for that very welcome development in Galway of an adult education campus? I think it will be a wonderful addition to Galway.

Second, as regards apprentices, the percentage of females involved in apprenticeships is very worrying, at as low as 7%. I would like to hear what plans the Government has in that regard.

I have followed up with local authorities and I know that the overall aim is 10,000 apprenticeships and we are up at 9,000. In respect of the local authorities, however, the figure is 750 by 2025. Galway City Council and Galway County Council distinguish themselves by not having one single apprenticeship on either authority, in a growing city, one of the five cities destined to grow - not a single apprenticeship of any nature in either local authority. That is unforgivable, and I ask the Minister of State to take a hands-on approach to that aspect.

Finally, as regards the wool feasibility study that was carried out, a wool council was to be set up, and one of the specific recommendations of the study was an apprenticeship in respect of wool and the possibilities there for the future. I asked this in the past of the senior Minister and he said it was not his area and that it was within the remit of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. I ask the Minister of State and the Minister again what specific progress is being made in this area as regards the development of wool as an indigenous industry.

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