COMMON SENSE PREVAILS - 50,000 apprenticeships on the way

Haven't we had apprenticeships for yonks?

There is only going to be 13 new apprenticeships added to what we have already in the "Financial services, polymer and life science areas"
It's all well and good having apprenticeships as long as they are actual proper trades that need to be learned over the course of a few years to do them effectively. One of the latest ones, "Insurance Practicioner" makes me think they're not really thinking this through.
Too many apprenticeships gives you what the UK has which is complete bollocks. You can do apprenticeship there to become a 'recruitment consultant' or 'fashion studio assistant' I think there's a few for "XYZ operative" as well.

I just feel it cheapens the qualification somewhat when Aircraft Engineer is an apprenticeship but so is Puppet Maker.

And they'll probably do what they did before and give an incentive to enter certain sectors. Back in the Celtic Tiger the first year apprentice rate for a building trade like, electrician or carpenter was 1.5 times for other sectors. I remember apprentice mechanics getting around 160 a week whereas their colleagues in the building trades were getting 210+.
Que a load of lads that were hopeless electricians but could have been decent mechanics failing their exams at the last hurdle (you got three shots and that was it) and giving up on a trade altogether because they went were the money was.