To ask the Minister for the Economy to detail any work her Department is undertaking to support a greater number of apprenticeships.

My Department continues to support apprenticeship growth through ApprenticeshipsNI and Higher Level Apprenticeships, with ApprenticeshipsNI starts increasing by 58% since 2021 and Higher Level Apprenticeship participation also growing substantially.

However, over almost a decade from 2016-17 to 2024-25, resource funding for the Department has increased by only 1%, compared with a 58% uplift to the Executive’s resource budget over that period. This real terms cut has consequences for investment in skills, including apprenticeships.

Current budget decisions, including changes to ApprenticeshipsNI funding which mean existing employees are no longer eligible for support, are being made in the context of contingency allocations and should not be read as reflecting my priorities.

I have previously highlighted the significant financial pressure that my Department is facing and I will continue to seek additional funding to deliver the skills that workers and businesses need.