Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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153. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which efforts continue to be made in the creation of apprenticeship opportunities for various trades throughout the country and especially in counties Sligo and Leitrim; the degree to which specific shortages have been identified; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14969/17]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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Following the Review of Apprenticeship Training in Ireland, the Apprenticeship Council was established in November 2014 to oversee the expansion of the apprenticeship system into a range of new sectors of the economy. The Council immediately began work on a call for proposals for the development of new enterprise-led apprenticeships.  The call issued in January 2015 and over 80 proposals were received from industry stakeholders working with education and training providers.

The Apprenticeship Council has been working with the proposers of these new programmes to develop them in sustainable apprenticeships that can be delivered on a nationwide basis. In recent months we have seen the first of these new apprenticeships coming on stream with the launch of the Insurance Practitioner Apprenticeship, developed jointly by the Insurance Institute of Ireland and the Institute of Technology Sligo, in September 2016. The new Industrial Electrical Engineer Apprenticeship also got underway last year, commencing in November 2016. Some 13 further new apprenticeships are due to get underway later this year in various sectors including medical devices, polymer processing and financial services.

I have also launched an Action Plan to expand Apprenticeship and Traineeship in Ireland 2016-2020, which sets out how state agencies, education and training providers and employers will work together to deliver on the Programme for Government commitments on the expansion of apprenticeship and traineeship in the period. The Plan sets out how we will manage the pipeline of new apprenticeships already established through the first call for proposals and also commits to a new call for apprenticeship proposals later this year. Over the lifetime of the Plan, 50,000 people will be registered on apprenticeship and traineeship programmes which represents a doubling of current activity. 

Registrations in the 27 craft apprenticeship trades are rising strongly as the employment and economic situation improves and I welcome that employers throughout the country are engaging strongly with the apprenticeship system.  In 2015 there were 3,153 registrations in existing apprenticeships which represented a 17% increase on the previous year. In 2016 there were 3,742 new registrations in craft apprenticeships, a further 19% increase. This year the strong growth in new registrations continues with 893 apprentices registered at the end of February, 36% increase on the same period last year. Current forecasts are that annual registrations will increase to 4,147 in 2017 and 4,697 in 2018.

A campaign to promote apprenticeship is currently being developed by SOLAS in consultation with key partners, including the Apprenticeship Council. The campaign will raise awareness and promote the values of apprenticeship for individual apprentices and for employers and it will cover both existing apprenticeships and the new apprenticeships now coming on stream.