Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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110. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 166 of 16 May 2017, if the ten new apprenticeships planned to commence in 2017 are the first apprenticeship categories to be rolled out under category 1 as identified by the Apprenticeship Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25206/17]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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There are currently five new apprenticeship programmes that have been developed by the Apprenticeship Council following its first call for proposals in 2015. Last year the Insurance Practitioner Apprenticeship launched in September and the Industrial Electrical Engineering Apprenticeship got underway in November. Three further new programmes are currently recruiting apprentices and will commence in May and June of this year, two in the medical devices area and one in polymer processing. Subject to successful validation, ten further new programmes are scheduled to commence in 2017 in various sectors including hospitality, accounting and financial services. All fifteen of these programmes were originally categorised by the Apprenticeship Council as category 1.

The Apprenticeship Council continues to work closely with consortia in developing proposals arising from the first call into sustainable apprenticeships. Details of all statutory apprenticeships currently operational or in development can be found on the new apprenticeship website www.apprenticeship.ie

Earlier this month, a second call for proposals was issued to refresh the pipeline of apprenticeship proposals established through the first call.  The second call will remain open until 1^stSeptember.