Hon CHRIS HIPKINS (Minister of Education): Some good news: I'm pleased to report that the number of apprentices continues to grow, with people from across the community signing up for careers in the trades. The Government has backed trades with investment in free trades training and is supporting employers to continue to have apprentices through the Apprenticeship Boost scheme. That investment is paying off, with double-digit growth in apprentice numbers during 2020, despite the impacts of COVID-19. Tertiary Education Commission data for enrolments in tertiary and vocational study as at December shows that the number of apprentices increased by 17.6 percent compared to December 2019. 