Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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74. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the extent to which it is expected that the skills available through those on the live register will be matched to the skill requirements of the workplace in respect of both the indigenous and the foreign direct investment sectors over the course of the next three years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38586/15]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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With the economy recovering and employment on the increase, meeting the skills needs of enterprises will be a critical factor to enable companies to expand and grow in both domestic markets and export markets. We have placed a strong focus on ensuring an adequate supply of skills and talent as part of the whole of Government Action Plan for Jobs process since 2012. The skills requirements of the economy are identified and met in a number of ways. The Expert Group on Future Skills Needs plays a key role in advising the Government on current and future skills needs of the economy and feeds these findings into the education and training sector. The Group comprises representatives from relevant Government Departments and agencies, as well as from enterprise, workers and education and training providers.

Through the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Social Protection, the Government has introduced a number of programmes to improve the skills of those who are on the Live Register to ensure their skills are directly relevant to the needs of the labour market. These programmes include Springboard, Momentum, ICT conversion courses and JobBridge, all of which provide very practical skills and/or work experience based on the requirements of the enterprise sector. A recent analysis shows that 60% of all graduates who completed a Springboard course in the period 2011 to 2014 were employed or self-employed within two years of completing the course.

The Apprenticeship Council has also recently announced the development of a number of new apprenticeships to meet the current and future skills needs of manufacturing and services sectors.

For my own Department’s part, protocols have been developed between my Department, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the Local Enterprise Offices on the one hand, and the Department of Social Protection on the other, to maximise the recruitment by enterprise agency client companies of appropriately skilled people from the Live Register. Údarás na Gaeltachta has also entered a similar protocol with the Department of Social Protection. This initiative involves close sharing of information to ensure that where new job openings are available, there is an efficient and timely matching with people on the Live Register who may have the skills required for these jobs.

The measures I have outlined are part of the Government’s Pathways to Work strategy to ensure that as new jobs are created in the economy, people who are on the Live Register avail of those jobs to the greatest extent possible. Over 126,000 new jobs have been created since the start of the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs process in 2012.