Apprenticeships: Statements Seanad Éireann — 2026-02-10 ============================================================ Marian Harkin (IND), Sligo-Leitrim I have no doubt. I thank Senators for the kind invitation to address the House. I have addressed the Seanad a few times previously, but never in my capacity as Minister of State. I have spoken on behalf of other Ministers, so it is a real privilege to be here today to address the House. Like the Cathaoirleach, I welcome most sincerely our 2025 Rose of Tralee, Katelyn Cummins, an electrical apprentice. I have met her before. She has done more for the promotion of apprenticeships than any Government programme or Ministers speaking about them because when people see what they can be they understand it could be for them. While Ms Cummins might never have thought this would happen, I want to thank her for that. It has made a real impression and difference and I know it will continue to do so. My role here today is to outline the work under way in my Department and hear the perspectives of Senators. Apprenticeships are of real interest to many in the House. I want to place a particular emphasis on them in this debate. Equally, I am happy to deal with our new further education and training, FET strategy that is in place, the careers in construction action plan, which we launched about two weeks ago, our work in the green skills area and our action plan for construction which, as the House will be aware, is still in ongoing public consultation. If anybody wants to speak to me about any of those measures, I will try to respond to their questions. It might seem from what I have said that we have a lot of plans, but the truth is they are a follow-up to previous plans and actions that have been taken which are in place and have been achieved. We want to examine and learn lessons from them. As a relatively new Minister of State, who has not been in the job for 12 months, it is great for me to have an opportunity to shape some of what goes into those plans. Let us talk a little bit about apprenticeships. By combining on-the-job employer-based training with off-the-job learning, apprenticeships allow individuals to earn as they learn. They provide a proven route to valuable qualifications and sustained employment. They also enable employers to build a skilled workforce that they and the country needs. Developing and expanding the apprenticeship system is a key priority for Government. In budget 2026, an additional €79 million was provided for apprenticeship delivery, bringing the total investment to just over €410 million per annum, more than double what it was in 2020. As well as that, a further €2.5 billion was allocated to reduce costs for apprentices attending higher education, permanently lowering fees by 17% for more than 14,000 apprentices. Government investment in apprenticeship delivery is showing results. Since 2020, the year my Department was formed, there has been a 77% increase in the number of apprentices. We have moved from 19,600 to 31,165 apprentices today. It is clear that apprentices are voting with their feet because they see this as an important career pathway. The range of apprenticeships has expanded significantly, with 78 programmes now, which is nearly three times the number that existed a decade ago. That reshapes public perception and opens new pathways to qualifications that were not previously accessible. It is not just that we have more skilled apprentices; we also have an increase in the number of pathways to gain different qualifications. In October last year I was delighted to launch the first common apprenticeship programme to be developed and delivered on an all-island basis. This apprenticeship, accounting technologist, is a strong example of productive co-operation across the island. Apprenticeships supporting construction, which is a national priority, are at the core of building capacity in the construction sector. Last month the Minister for further education, Deputy Lawless, and I launched the updated careers in construction plan. I will not go into any detail here because there is a lot in it but if anybody is interested and wants to ask me about it, they can let me know. This plan will reduce barriers to a career in construction and build pathways so that learners can view the construction industry as a place where they can have a thriving and fulfilling career. A modern methods of construction, MMC, action plan was launched last year and is being implemented at a cross-sectoral level. The plan will help to mainstream these new building techniques which will increase productivity and widen access. Again, if anybody wants more detail, I am happy to speak about it afterwards. During my term as Minister of State I have had the pleasure of relaunching a level 4 retrofitting course with the team at St. Andrew's Resource Centre. If any Senators know that team, they will know the excellent work they do. I attended the national scaffolding apprenticeship graduation ceremony in Tullamore. I was there when they broke ground at the national demonstration park for MMC in Mount Lucas. I have visited so many companies but will mention one in my own constituency, Vision Built in Tobercurry, which manufactures 2-D and 3-D modular units and does excellent co-operative work with the local school, St. Attracta's. Again, if anybody wants to know more, I can speak about it later. I want to mention briefly green skills and offshore wind. The availability of green skills is key to this economy's transition to a climate-resilient and climate-neutral economy. A critical development in this regard was the publication by SOLAS of the first national strategy for FET skills in the green transition, entitled Green Skills 2030. My Department is leading the skills response to Ireland's offshore wind ambitions as well as in many other areas. Again, I am happy to provide further detail later. A core objective of my Department is to ensure that apprenticeships are both inclusive and accessible. This means that apprenticeships are for all groups, but especially for disadvantaged and under-represented groups. We have many different supports including the gender bursary programme, the access to apprenticeship initiative, and the Traveller apprenticeship incentivisation programme. I am happy to answer questions on any of those programmes. It is also important for people to know that apprenticeships are moving into the public service. The public and civil service can play a key role in the apprenticeship system, including in supporting our goal of inclusion. The public service action plan was published in 2023 and the total apprenticeship population in the public service grew from 373 in 2022 to 566 in 2025. We have made strong progress in growing Ireland's apprenticeship system but further work, of course, is needed. A key priority of Government is ensuring that our apprenticeship model continues to evolve in line with the needs of learners, employers and the wider economy. Pay is an important factor and I am aware that it was discussed in this House last December. I am willing to come back to the issue in my responses to the debate. It is essential that all apprenticeship programmes remain fit for purpose and continue to reflect real industry skills needs. I thank the House for the opportunity to be here. It is a real honour and privilege to share the work of my Department with this House. It is also important that I listen to what Senators have to say. I look forward to hearing their contributions and to the continued engagement that I hope will strengthen our work together. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-02-10/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:36+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-02-10