Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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1. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of craft apprentice instructors hired to date since the launch of the recruitment campaign, by type of craft instruction. [40345/24]

Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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How many craft apprentice instructors have been hired to date since the launch of the recruitment campaign? Will the Minister provide a breakdown by type of craft instruction? We know of the huge backlogs of apprentices that exist, so that sort of detail would be useful.

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy. There has been a high demand from employers and learners alike for craft apprenticeship in recent years, reflecting a strong construction sector and the Government's commitment to the targets within Housing for All and the climate action plan, and to the delivery of the national development plan. Craft apprentice registrations increased by 25% from 2019 to 2023. As a result of the urgent work my Department initiated in November 2023 to increase craft training capacity, the number of training places has increased from 5,600 in 2019 to over 7,500 currently, which is a 34% increase. The National Apprenticeship Office's recruitment campaign for additional apprentice instructors, which was launched in November 2023, has been an important pillar of this plan. The Department sanctioned 134 instructor posts in support of this campaign. We are very pleased to report that over 87 posts have been filled nationally, with three more offers in progress. They will deliver courses across 11 craft apprenticeships in the four industry families, which are construction, electrical, engineering and motor, along with and one of the consortia-led programmes. We will provide the Deputy with a detailed breakdown table in that regard.

Further posts will also be advertised throughout the remainder of 2024 and into 2025. In addition, to support retention in the apprenticeship workforce my Department also converted 80 apprenticeship instructor posts from fixed term to permanent. The recent announcement of €77.4 million investment for apprenticeship in budget 2025 is the single largest core investment in apprenticeship since the formation of our Department in July 2020. This funding will be important to support the educators who will equip young people, career changers and those returning to update or improve their skills with the knowledge and know-how that employers are looking for.

Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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We all know there have been major backlogs in the apprenticeship system. We all know of the necessity of apprenticeships across the board and particularly craft apprenticeships. It is not uncommon for apprentices wait for up to 18 months to be called for the relevant phase of their off-the-job training, whether in a technical university, TU, or education and training board, ETB. There has been an enormous level of criticism of the Government for this particular issue. We have seen high dropout rates. The backlog means that apprentices are being paid less for longer, as their rate of pay is tied to the relevant phase of training.

The Minister of State has said that the plan was for 134 places. Some 87 of those have been filled, with three in play and the rest to follow. Will the Minister of State give me a timeline in that regard? We need to ensure we have these people in place so we can get through the backlog that exists. We must ensure that these apprentices are paid what they deserve and enter the workforce to do the necessary work, particularly in construction.

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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I will clarify a point because I may have misspoken earlier. The number of training places has grown by 40% since the end of 2023, from over 5,600 places in December 2023 to 7,500 places in August 2024. As I previously said to the Deputy, over 130 instructor posts have been sanctioned to date. As I said, 80 such posts have been filled. The Deputy asked for a timeline. The remaining posts will be advertised across the end of this year and into next year.

The Deputy also referenced the backlog. We can provide a table to the Deputy. The number of apprentices waiting six months or longer at phase 2 in July 2023 was 6,166. In August 2024, the number had fallen to 2,484.

Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. I welcome that information. We need to see this happen quicker and better. It is as simple as that. Some of the difficulty with the backlog and filling the spaces is that some of these qualified tradespeople can earn more on site than in the classroom. In its alternative budget, Sinn Féin set out €4.4 million in financial supports to incentivise those currently working on sites to undertake the necessary classroom teaching. What has the Minister of State considered to ensure we can get the number up to 134 or more, if required, to make sure we can deliver with regard to the backlog and, beyond that, to ensure we can deliver the stream of apprentices that we absolutely require, particularly across the construction sector? I do not have to point out to anyone here the absolute necessity of ensuring we have the ability to deliver on whatever targets are set by the Government and whoever is in government next.

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy is asking what else can be done to help to reduce the backlog. The National Apprenticeship Office launched a recruitment campaign across several media in November. That campaign used a centralised National Apprenticeship Office platform for applications. Added to that, a new advanced block approval process for the posts was put in place and the approval process was delivered through our Department and the Department of Education. It will be used to streamline the sanctions into the future. As the Deputy will fully appreciate, we are in a competitive labour market as we try to attract people into these roles because of the buoyancy of the labour market, which is at full employment. The aim of the campaign was to support the delivery of that increased capacity and I have outlined to the Deputy what we have achieved to date and how. Well over half of the posts have been filled. It is our obligation and intention to drive on that process and fill the remaining posts by the end of next year.