East Londonderry has fewest apprenticeships

Fewer apprenticeships are on offer in the East Londonderry parliamentary constituency than any other part of Northern Ireland, the Sentinel can reveal.

By Niall Deeney

Published 23rd Dec 2014, 11:50 BST

The most recent figures available, from July this year, show that there were 223 apprenticeships on offer in East Londonderry - the lowest total in Northern Ireland. The North Belfast constituency, meanwhile, had the highest number with 432. Across Northern Ireland, there were 6,296 apprenticeships.

The figures are taken from a response by Employment Minister Stephen Farry to a query about the number of apprenticeships available in each constituency by Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA Bronwyn McGahan.

The Minister said: “My department’s ApprenticeshipsNI programme is employer-led training provision, with employers creating apprenticeship positions in line with their future business needs. It is therefore employers who determine the number of apprenticeships available in each constituency.”