Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 91: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide details of the new European Commission fund to retrain construction workers here; the way they can access same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40483/11]

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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On 14 November 2011, the European Council approved co-financing of €35.7m under the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) in respect of three applications for assistance for almost 9,000 former workers made redundant in the construction NACE 41, 43 and 71 sub-sectors between 1 July 2009 and 31 March 2010. Redundant workers were identified based on evidence of statutory redundancy payments and on data from the apprenticeship database held by FÁS.

The final EU funding decision releasing a maximum 65% EGF contribution of €35.7m in total is expected shortly. Including the national 35% co-funding element, the measures included in the EGF applications amount to circa €55m in total. A number of active labour market activation measures, for which EGF co-financing has been sought, are already being provided by the relevant service providers and funded from national sources. These measures include career guidance, full, part-time and evening further education and training courses, apprenticeship on- and off-the-job training, full and part-time third level education programmes and related training and education allowances where appropriate.

The main service providers delivering these supports are FÁS, Vocational Education Committees and publicly funded higher education institutes. Training is also being provided through contracted private providers and the technical employment support grant mechanism administered by FÁS.

My Department has not notified any of the identified redundant workers to date. It is intended that letters notifying all persons who are eligible for EGF co-financed assistance of a number of new supports which will be made available to them will issue very shortly.