John Whelan (Labour)
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I was astonished to learn from information that has been made available to me from both the trade union sector and the employer representative agencies such as the Construction Industry Federation that there are only 12 apprentices in the entire country. It begs the question what FÁS was doing and what its function and responsibility were if it was not to ensure sufficient training and an adequate skills set.

There was, as we all know, a dramatic and drastic downturn in the construction sector, but there are tentative signs of recovery. There is a housing shortage, but now it will be compounded by a dramatic and chronic skills shortage.

As recently as 2004, 1,200 apprentices were going through the system on an annual basis. I hark back to the time of AnCO when it was a great opportunity for any young person to be accepted on an apprenticeship programme. It meant they were trained, they became skilled and they had a job and a career path for life. Often, they went on to set up their own businesses and employ others.

As we talk about tackling a drastic housing shortage, it is hard to believe that there are only 12 apprentices in the entire country. It will lead to serious job creation problems and a shortage of skilled labour on building sites throughout the country.

All the stakeholders - employers and the trade union sector - have come together to appeal to the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, under whose remit this falls under the newly formed auspices of SOLAS within her Department. I am informed there are 60 staff in the apprenticeship section of the Department. There are 60 staff to look after 12 apprentices. It does not add up. It does not make sense. We will walk into a terrible haymaker unless there is dramatic, drastic, robust and immediate intervention by the Department to get SOLAS to get its act together and ensure we will not have a situation in a year or two where one will not be able to get a qualified plasterer or block layer in this country. It is alarming to think that such could even possibly be the case. I ask the Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, to outline the plans of the Department of Education and Skills and SOLAS to address this chronic problem.

Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)
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SOLAS is the body with statutory responsibility for the management of the apprenticeship training model in Ireland. SOLAS also convenes the national apprenticeship advisory committee, representative of employers, unions, education and training bodies and State agencies, to advise on a range of issues relating to apprenticeship. I understand from SOLAS that, as of 28 August this year, the total apprenticeship population in Ireland is 7,483. This is made up of a live population of 6,331 and a redundant population of 1,152. Of the live population, the total of those on the job is 5,591 while a further 740 are on off-the-job training.

Apprenticeship is a demand-led scheme and SOLAS approves an employer as competent to train apprentices but does not limit or control recruitment numbers. The continuity of apprentice registrations and the number of apprentices registered with SOLAS is determined by individual employers within a broad range of occupational sectors.

In recognition of the fact that since the current system of apprenticeship was implemented in the early 1990s there have been major changes to the structure of the economy and the nature of employment, my predecessor established an independent review group to progress a consultation process and prepare recommendations on how the apprenticeship system could be improved. The group's membership included employers, representatives of business and unions and academic experts. Following a wide consultation process, the review group submitted its report in December 2013 and it was published in January 2014.

Key recommendations from the review group included new governance arrangements, including the appointment of an enterprise-led apprenticeship council hosted by SOLAS with close co-operation from the Higher Education Authority; a review of existing apprenticeship curricula as a matter of urgency; the expansion of the apprenticeship model into a range of new enterprise sectors; recruitment to apprenticeship to continue to be the responsibility of approved employers but with greater planning and control of numbers in apprenticeship; the development of clear occupational and academic progression routes; and a branding and promotion initiative illustrating the benefits of apprenticeship as a way of learning and the career opportunities arising.

The apprenticeship implementation plan was published on 30 June 2014. The plan adopts a phased approach to implementation, recognising the need to progress current work on existing apprenticeships and to determine demand from new enterprise sectors through a call for proposals before embedding new arrangements in legislation. The plan sets out how an apprenticeship council will be appointed and details a series of actions to renew existing apprenticeships and develop new ones, including a call for proposals for apprenticeships in new areas. These actions will be delivered in three phases and are under way.

The Department is confident that we now have a good basis for renewing apprenticeship in Ireland as a strong model of learning in both further and higher education and training, thus ensuring that our apprenticeship system meets the needs of trainees and employers now and in the future.

John Whelan (Labour)
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I thank the Minister of State for his answer. It is not directly his responsibility. SOLAS is being deliberately disingenuous with the answer that it has provided to the Minister. SOLAS is dodging the question. I state categorically that SOLAS is massaging the figures. I have verifiable figures from both the Construction Industry Federation and ICTU which have made a joint submission to the Department. There are only four plasterers, three block layers and three painters and decorators under apprenticeship in the country. Obviously, SOLAS is deliberately including mechanics and electricians in its figures to dodge the question. I refer to the wet trades. Specifically, I refer to the construction sector in this regard. These figures were only put together within the past fortnight.

I do not share the confidence that SOLAS is on top of the job and there is a robust system of training in place for these specific trades and skill sets. I would respectfully ask the Minister of State to bring that back to the Minister for Education and Skills and see that it is addressed.

Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)
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Nobody wants to give misleading figures. Senator Whelan is quite accurate in stating that there is a shortage of those skill sets because of the downturn in the economy. We are now in a different situation. There is a realisation that plasterers, chippies and those involved in the needs of industry have gone to America or Australia, or they are all over the world. Those tradesmen can return. I am aware at first hand that in my area there are tradesmen coming back from Australia and other places.

Senator Whelan's issue is the apprenticeships. I am certain that the Minister will keep it in mind. If the economy is to grow, we need workers with such skills. I certainly will report back the Senator's concern to the Minister. I would hope, as it should be the intention, that everybody involved ensures that there are apprentices to carry out projects and work as the economy improves in the future.