Do we really think pulling a pint provides the basis for an apprenticeship?

Lord Haughey declared he would love to meet the person who came up with the term "modern apprenticeships". And he was heavily critical of both the UK and Scottish Governments in the context of what can be viewed as an apprenticeship these days, as well as the big headline-grabbing numbers trotted out for the quantum of posts created.

Lord Haughey, who is one of Scotland's best-known businessmen and philanthropists and has been a major Labour Party donor over the years, feels these numbers create a false impression of what is going on. And he describes the situation as "shocking".

Referring to the Scottish Government's annual target for 25,000 new modern apprenticeships, Lord Haughey declared: "All the kids out there believe this is new jobs. I can tell you the vast majority is not. We are actually giving false hope out there. I am going round schools and kids are saying to me, 'Where are these jobs advertised?'."

He added: "The reality is the largest percentage are not new jobs. Indeed, some are two and three-day training courses, [such as] how to pour a pint correctly."

The last thing we should do at this juncture is give young people looking for their first jobs false hope. They are, through no fault of their own, already having to pay the price for the actions of the global financial sector, which triggered deep recession. They are also bearing the cost of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Government's excessive and badly-targeted austerity programme, which has caused very significant damage to the economy.

Prime Minister David Cameron last month reiterated the Conservative Party's aim of using cuts in welfare to help fund a total of three million more apprenticeships in the UK as a whole.

Lord Haughey, who has built his Glasgow-based business over nearly three decades, said of the UK position on apprenticeships: "The myth is 100 times the size of the myth in Scotland."

And he highlighted a desperate need for more apprenticeships in engineering and construction sector-related roles.

He is right. Apprenticeships must be jobs with significant training, with the short-term sacrifice of making do with relatively low pay early on rewarded by a good living once qualified.

The managing director of Select, the Scottish trade association for the electrical industry, also made his views on the apprenticeship issue known in a letter published in The Herald on Monday. Newell McGuinness's comments, particularly in regard to what has been happening on this front in other parts of the UK, chimed with what Lord Haughey had to say.

Responding to what was written in the Called To Account column two weeks ago, Mr McGuinness said: "[The] main point that we must be careful to not devalue the term 'apprenticeship' by attaching [it] to a whole range of poorly-paid, short training programmes is spot on."

To be fair to the Scottish Government, it appears to be well-intentioned in its efforts to use apprenticeships to tackle youth training and unemployment. But it must ensure it knows, in setting policy and making pronouncements, what constitutes a real apprenticeship and what is merely certification or a low-paying job with few prospects.

Mr McGuinness appeared to take the Scottish Government's good intentions on board when he wrote: "Many Scots will continue to be frustrated by the politically motivated and often spurious apprentice numbers bandied about in Scotland. The truth is, however, somewhat different and there are clear signs the Scottish Government now recognises the value of real employed-status apprenticeships, such as those in the electrical, plumbing and wider construction industry.

"We must hope this remains the case and that Scotland does not get sucked into some of the nonsense evident elsewhere in the UK."

Lord Haughey notes the importance of people gaining certificates and advancing their skills.

However, his point that this does not in itself constitute an apprenticeship is well made.

There is no doubt more to be done by the Scottish Government, as Lord Haughey points out.

He is right to want to see far more of the old-fashioned trade apprenticeships, which are so important not just to the economy but also to the lives of the individuals who take up these opportunities.

Gone are the days when the Clyde was a global shipbuilding powerhouse and the yards were teeming with apprentices.

But skilled tradespeople are needed as much as ever, especially with a generation of engineers, electricians, plumbers and builders close to retirement.

Lord Haughey, who as a businessman will be all too aware of the forces of supply and demand, said of the need for more skilled people in the engineering and construction sectors: "The lack of investment there in the last 10 years is going to jump up and bite us. In about five years, a plumber or an electrician is going to cost you about £45-an-hour because there won't be any."

We must realise the mood music from the UK Government on apprenticeships is very different from that at Holyrood, with Mr Cameron seemingly brandishing them as a stick, not a carrot, to welfare claimants. It is difficult to see this as anything other than a sign that he does not realise the value of real apprenticeships to the economy.

He wants to force people into apprenticeships, which is a nonsense. And his whole body language in his recent speech about the issue suggested he was not focused on directing welfare claimants towards traditional apprenticeships offering good prospects.

Mr Cameron must realise many of the young people unfairly maligned by the right are picking up the tab for the highly-paid bankers who brought us to this sorry pass.

Lord Haughey has highlighted his intention to speak about the apprenticeship issue to as many politicians as will listen. Hopefully, they will heed what he has to say.