Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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211. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of apprentices at the end of November 2017. [51948/17]

Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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212. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the projected number of apprentices in each year from 2018 to 2021. [51949/17]

Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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213. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated spend on apprenticeships in each year from 2018 to 2021. [51950/17]

Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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214. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the apprenticeship programmes in operation at the end of November 2017; and the apprenticeship programmes planned for 2018. [51951/17]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 211 to 214, inclusive, together.

The 2018 budget allocation for apprenticeship training is €122m which represents an increase of almost 24% on the 2017 allocation of €98.7m. Future years allocations will be determined through the normal budgetary process which takes account of competing demands and the overall availability of resources.

As the Deputy is aware, I published the Action Plan to Expand Apprenticeship & Traineeship in Ireland 2016-2020 which sets out a series of detailed actions and targets outlining how the expansion commitments in the area will be met. As set out in the plan, we have targeted 10 new apprenticeship programmes to get underway in 2018.

The number of apprentices registered in 2017 at end November is 4,525. The information requested by the Deputy in relation to the apprenticeship programmes in operation at end of November and the forecast registrations to 2020 is outlined in the following tables.Please note that SOLAS does not currently have forecast registrations beyond 2020.