The apprenticeship system is in crisis and there is a backlog of 9,000 people waiting to qualify in trades, a Sinn Féin TD has told the Dáil.
The party's Finance Spokesperson, Pearse Doherty, accused the Government of taking its eye off the ball and said it is now taking far longer for people to get qualified.
Speaking during Leaders' Questions, he also said apprentices were earning far less than they should be.
In response, Tánaiste Micheál Martin said Ireland's construction output was the highest across the European Union and those figures would not be possible without many apprenticeships.
He said there had been unrelenting focus on reducing waiting time for apprenticeships and very significant progress had been made.
A taskforce has been set up and has been implementing a plan, Mr Martin added.
However, he said the Covid-19 pandemic had created backlogs.
