Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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425. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reskilling initiatives being considered in order to activate persons to transition from at-risk sectors and unemployment over to the highly successful biopharma, medtech, information and communications technology and foodtech sectors in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36426/21]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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Some sectors, occupations and individuals have been impacted by the fallout of the covid pandemic to a greater degree than others. Among these are young people, part time workers, those in the hospitality sector, the lower skilled and those with lower educational attainment.

As the Deputy is aware, as part of the Government’s response to the labour market and skills effects of the pandemic, a range of measures were introduced as a response to upskilling and reskilling needs of individuals and businesses through the July Jobs Stimulus and Budget 2021. These measures are providing 35,000 education and training places to help those who were displaced by the effects of the pandemic. A further 15,000 places were announced as part of the skills package in Budget 2021. Combined these measures include places on the Skills to Complete initiative, additional places through Skillnet supported programmes, funding of the Apprenticeship Incentivisation scheme, the roll-out of retrofit training across the country, additional places through Springboard+ and the Human Capital Initiative, and the expansion of the range of short-duration, part-time and online upskilling and reskilling offerings available for recipients of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment.

Evidence and research on Ireland’s current and future skills needs and job opportunity indicators are monitored by the Skills and Labour Market Research Unit in SOLAS, on behalf of the National Skills Council, and are summarised annually in the National Skills Bulletin. We know that it is critical that people and businesses can avail of opportunities for developing skills in the way that suits them best, no matter who they are or what sector they are in, in order to overcome these impacts, and that we ensure that our growth as a society is sustainable and inclusive.

Significant work has been undertaken in terms of the potential skills impact of the pandemic across the country and has included a focus on occupations, regions and potential profiles of learners. Upskilling and reskilling opportunities are currently available across many sectors and, through national engagement, scope has been extended to consider the prioritisation of skills.

The Skills to Advance initiative, which enables targeted skills development for vulnerable employees, was developed in response to evolving skill needs and assists those facing changes in their work due to technology advances, changing work practices and market diversification. Opportunities offered through Skills to Advance incorporate digital, socio-emotional and technical skills development to enhance employee skills and support increased productivity in Irish SMEs.

A key feature of Skills to Advance is the identification of skills gaps and needs with employers to develop customised training solutions for their workforce. In addition, specific initiatives are being taken at sectoral and regional level to provide novel upskilling opportunities for those in areas of work at risk of displacement and to reskill people for emerging work opportunities.

There are currently a number of opportunities to develop transferable skillsets in a range of areas to include:

- Leadership and managementwhich provides critical upskilling to support employees in a wide range of sectors.

- Developing Leaders for Hospitality and Tourismwhich provides upskilling opportunities for team leads and supervisors and a career path to upskill in the sector.

Areas currently being scoped out and developed also include:

- SME Digi-Skills Initiative to boost business performance in SMEs

- Green Skills initiative to provide cross sectoral upskilling opportunities in green skills.

- eCollege is the national further education and training online learning service. eCollege offers very flexible online learning and is ideal for those wishing to study at their own pace around their work and life commitments, and so is a valuable support to those looking to reskill or gain skills to support transition to other sectors. eCollege offers courses in office productivity, business, web and graphic design, computer programming, data science and IT professional subject areas.

In response to the impact of the pandemic on employment levels and the requirement to provide reskilling initiatives, my department has also engaged with Skillnet Ireland who have developed the Skills Connectscheme in partnership with industry. Through Skills Connect, Skillnet Ireland is achieving cross-sector employability by enabling jobseekers secure new employment opportunities in high-growth areas such as medtech manufacturing, cyber security, wind energy, software programming, digital marketing, customer service, and logistics/ warehousing. Skills Connect was introduced in July 2020 as a rapid and agile response to the emerging needs of businesses, regions and impacted workers.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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426. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the details of work by his Department in providing research and analysis support to the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs in respect to the future needs of each of the highly successful biopharma, medtech, information and communications technology and foodtech manufacturing sectors in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36427/21]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As part of Ireland’s National Skills Architecture, the EGFSN helps inform the work of the National Skills Council, which advises on the prioritisation of identified skills needs and the allocation of resources across the education and training system to address these needs.

The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, the Higher Education Authority and SOLAS, sit on the EGFSN, along with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and its relevant agencies, and representation from the business and trade union communities.

Over the past five years the EGFSN has undertaken a range of studies relevant to the biopharma, medtech, information and communications technology and foodtech manufacturing sectors in Ireland. These studies have been informed by comprehensive engagement and consultation across Ireland’s enterprise base, including with Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and their client companies.

These studies have included 2016’s Future Skills Needs of the Biopharma Industry in Ireland; 2017’s Update on Future Skills Needs in the Food and Drink Sector, developed in support of the Foodwise 2025 strategy; and 2018’s Addressing the Skills Needs Arising from the Potential Trade Implications of Brexit, which examined the trade diversification and logistics related skills needs of a number of sectors, including Agri-Food and Health Lifesciences, in a hard Brexit scenario.

The EGFSN has also played a key role in the ICT Skills Action Plan process, since the inception of the Plans in 2012. Its latest High Level ICT Skills study, 2019’s Forecasting the Demand for High Level ICT Skills in Ireland, 2017-2022, was a key evidence based input into the development of Technology Skills 2022- Ireland’s Third ICT Skills Action Plan. The EGFSN has further supported the ICT skills agenda through its studies on design skills- 2017’s Winning by Design and 2020’s Together for Design.

More generally, 2020’s Leading the Way- Investing in Management Development for SME Productivity and Growth examined the area of management development, a key cross sectoral skill need. It has also examined the skills impacts of digitalisation across all sectors of the economy, in 2018’s Digital Transformation- Assessing the Impact of Digitalisation on Ireland’s Workforce.

As part of its 2021 work programme, the Group is also considering the skills required to deploy, manage and regulate artificial intelligence, with a view to realising the productivity, growth and innovation potential of AI, to ensure it is adopted in a trustworthy manner, and to allow its adoption by large and small firms. This study is scheduled to be published in Q4 2021.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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427. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans for the acceleration of the National Skills Strategy in Ireland in respect of the digital skills of the national workforce at entry, intermediary and advanced levels; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36429/21]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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428. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans for the acceleration of the National Skills Strategy in Ireland in respect of digital skills for persons in general in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36430/21]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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429. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans for the development of digital skills in the indigenous SME sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36431/21]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 427 to 429, inclusive, together.

Ireland's National Skills Strategy 2015 recognises that technology is one of the key drivers of change and improved digital skills will be vital for Ireland’s future, both in higher-end dedicated ICT jobs and, more widely, as a basic core competence.

While there is a focus on trying to future proof the labour market and be at the forefront of skills provision, it is also important that digital literacy is addressed as part of the wider agenda. Many adults do not have the right skills to succeed in the new, interconnected, digital world and are disengaged from learning. Basic digital skills are important across all sectors and will help mitigate against automation risks and provide a platform for workers to upskill.

Reflecting this and in line with the Programme for Government, I tasked SOLAS, with the development of a new 10 year strategy for adult literacy, numeracy and digital literacy. I plan to bring this new Strategy to Government for approval shortly.

A range of programmes are provided within Education and Training Boards (ETBs) for individuals who wish to develop their digital literacy. Basic ICT tuition is integrated within adult literacy and numeracy provision. The majority of digital literacy provision is free of charge or is heavily subsidised.

The Skills to Compete initiative, which was developed in response to the urgent need for activation, upskilling and reskilling as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, offer courses built around three key priorities: delivering the essential skills required for modern workplaces; building strong digital skills; and developing the specific vocational skills to secure opportunities in growing sectors and occupations.

E College is a leading learning platform that delivers online training courses in business, project management, information technology, graphic design, web design, digital marketing, software development and basic computer literacy. These courses are all industry recognised programmes, accessed on a continuous intake basis, and enable flexible learning for unemployed learners, workers in sectors vulnerable to automation with skills levels below NFQ level 5, and those over 50 years of age. eCollege courses are temporarily being made available free of charge to all as an additional support to those impacted by Covid-19 containment measures.

In addition, there are currently 5 apprenticeships available in the ICT sector and a Software Solutions Architect apprenticeship which is expected to be offered at level 9 on the NFQ is in development. The apprenticeships currently available at level 6 are Network Engineer Associate, Software Developer Associate, Cybersecurity and Telecommunications and Data Network Engineering Technician and at level 8 there is CGI Technical Artist (Animation, Games, VFX).

Skillnet Ireland is supporting indigenous SMEs to enhance digital skills and is implementing several digital skills actions assigned to the agency in both the National Skills Strategy and Technology Skills 2022. Skillnet Ireland are prioritising programmes that address the digital skills gap in SMEs, that prepare SMEs for the digital transformation and that maximise the use of technology to improve both the productivity and innovation of SMEs. In 2020, 10,000 digital skills training places were provided by Skillnet Ireland that delivered a total of 150,000 training days. All programmes were funded on a cost sharing basis with employers.

To enhance the availability of advanced and high level ICT skills, Technology Skills 2022, seeks to deliver 47,000 IT Graduates by 2022 and sets out the priority actions which will be undertaken in the four-year period 2019-2022 to meet the demands for high-level ICT skillsets in the Irish economy. It sets out to provide appropriate education and training pathways for people to train, learn and upskill in a variety of high-level ICT skills which are sought after by a diverse range of industries to support and drive economic performance over the coming years.

Springboard+ 2021 was launched on 14th June 2021, providing 10,158 higher education places on 294 courses. As a result of multi-annual funding of graduate conversion courses, this leads to a combined total of 13,128 places in 399 courses available in the 2021/22 academic year under Springboard+ 2021 and HCI Pillar 1.

Courses available under Springboard+ 2021 include high level ICT, and courses in new and emerging technologies. 1,451 places are available on 36 courses in high level ICT skills.

The majority of courses approved under Springboard+ 2021 and HCI Pillar 1 will start in 2021 and in early 2022. Full details on Springboard+ and HCI courses, the eligibility criteria and how to apply can be found on the website: www.springboardcourses.ie.