The CSO's labour force survey before Christmas found that we have significant increases in youth and long-term unemployment. The youth unemployment rate is nearly three times the average unemployment rate and it is clearly becoming much harder for young people to find work. What is the Department doing to address this increasing gap in our labour market?

I find it frustrating that when we highlight issues or concerns about rising youth unemployment and long-term unemployment rates, they seem to be batted away with lines like those that the Taoiseach used earlier and that we are hearing now to the effect that we have got so many people in work, that the rate is record breaking and that this is the most important thing. Essentially, the point made is that we should all be grateful that people have jobs at all. Níl sé seo maith go leor. We have seen a distinct rise in…

I encourage the Minister of State to go beyond the numbers and talk to young people herself. The young people I speak to tell me about the difficulties they have in finding employment. Beyond the statistics that the Minister of State is setting out, we have to simply acknowledge this. As I mentioned, and as we know from history repeating itself, it is a canary in the coal mine. We know it is an indicator of a broader concern across unemployment. We know there has been an erosion in the quality of the work that is o…

I would also like to take this opportunity to wish everybody in Dáil Éireann a Happy Christmas and I would like to single out two people in particular, Karen Hinkson-Deeney and Míde Nic Fhionnlaoich, who are my team and without whom I could not have had this first year as a TD. I want to build on Deputy Gannon's points around this particular technology, which I have huge concerns with. Some of the key points I want to make are around the high-risk use of AI and the fact the appropriate safeguards are not yet in pla…

I congratulate Deputy Whitmore on a brilliant piece of work. While I welcome that the Government is not outright opposing this Bill - I do appreciate that and we all welcome it very much - I have to say it is frustrating and disappointing because we hear this line consistently from the Government that we do not put forward solutions, and yet the last three pieces of legislation this party has put forward have all been served with timed amendments. They are not complex pieces of legislation that would require the Go…

Before I talk about online safety I will talk about online dangers we are trying to tackle. The first story is a very sad story of a young man called Adam Raine who died earlier this year. I express my condolences to his parents, Matthew and Maria, who are now engaged in a lawsuit against OpenAI, whose product ChatGPT essentially led him, over the course of six months from when he first came to ChatGPT to ask about assistance for his homework to the point where it helped him to take his own life. He spoke repeatedl…

I congratulate Deputy Whitmore on bringing this Bill to the floor. It is well researched, well prepared legislation that allows for the establishment of what should be and must be a core part of the infrastructure that shapes Ireland's response to the climate crisis. As Deputy Whitmore described, we have two choices in how we face the climate crisis. We can see it in a way that allows us to flounder, to see the negatives and everything else, or we can see the opportunity that presents itself when we think about our…

I would like to discuss the need for schools in the Kilternan area of my constituency of Dublin-Rathdown. Kilternan is one of the most beautiful areas in my constituency. It is in the Dublin Mountains on the Wicklow border. We have a very diverse community with more suburban areas like Dundrum and Stillorgan but as one moves up towards Belarmine, Carrickmines, Stepaside and Kilternan, they are quite different in terms of the topographical area and some of the challenges that brings. Parents are at the end of their …

It is Fiona Downes. I will send on the details.

I thank the Minister of State. There is a lot of detail there about the different demographic data and census data. I am trying to add to that data the voice of the people of Dublin Rathdown and specifically Kilternan. These constituents are, as I said, incredibly frustrated at this. The Minister of State touched on some of the alternatives in other areas but the issue with that is I have just heard this morning that transport is not going to be provided by the Department. Kilternan is already struggling with trans…

I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this motion and the opportunity to speak to this incredibly important issue. I will use three slogans to shape my contribution. The first is "Trans rights are human rights." The reason I wish to delve into this a bit more is the Minister referenced equality a lot in her contribution. As a professional in the human rights and equality sphere, I have thought a lot about how human rights and equality interact. The reality is that until everybody’s healthcare needs are met,…

I appreciate the time to speak to this Bill, but I have to share the frustration that many others have expressed at how this has been handled and the fact we have only been able to access the Bill in the past number of hours. The Chief Whip addressed the issue on the Order of Business, but it will have a knock-on effect. She said we will have more time to debate the issue next week, but as somebody who attends the Business Committee many weeks, as deputy Whip of my own party, I know there is a queue of things we ar…

Last week during Questions on Policy or Legislation, the Tánaiste mentioned that the Minister was preparing proposals around online safety to bring before the House and expected to introduce them by the end of the year. I am keen to hear about the details of that, in particular the role for Coimisiún na Meán and how people will be protected and whether those protections will extend beyond those under 16 years of age.

I thank the Minister. I have concerns. For a start, the focus being entirely on children and vulnerable people risks leaving behind the rest of the population. I am hearing more and more about age verification being a silver bullet to resolve everything. I have huge concerns about age verification, even if it is robust. It raises major privacy issues in that it would hand over official documentation to providers that have already proven that they do not respect our privacy. It has a cut-off point, which means that …

I am not saying that age verification cannot be used. Rather, I am telling the Minister that if it is used, it raises privacy concerns. My point is that it is not fixing the actual problem at the root because all of that nasty material remains online. We need to have recommender systems turned off by default because they are the issue. They are the things keeping our eyeballs on screens and making sure polarisation is driving clickbait and profit lines. There are fundamental ways in which these tech platforms need …

We in the Social Democrats welcome this programme. It has been wonderful. My office has spoken to dozen of artists who tell me that no matter the medium, the scheme has meant they have been able to produce more art, has helped them to have healthier and happier lives and has allowed their art to get to more people. There are paintings, sculptures, poems and plays that simply would not exist without this scheme. We genuinely feel passionately that it is a positive element. It is helpful to know that the eligibility …

I thank the Minister for the information. We share his passion for this programme. My concern is that it seems that a pilot was run and we are just getting another pilot. We need more certainty, more permanence and a broader cohort of people who can access it. I raised in previous sessions with the Minister the idea that a pilot should also be something that we capture the data from and potentially offer to other cohorts in society. At that time, he dismissed it. He said that he was just looking after his Departmen…

I thank People Before Profit for bringing forward this motion. We in the Social Democrats are very proud to co-sign it. I thank the many parliamentarians since 2018 who have worked on this legislation, particularly Senator Black. I also thank the people in the Gallery - the activists who continue, on a daily basis across this country, to campaign in solidarity with the people of Palestine. The weekly vigil in Monkstown at 6 p.m. on a Sunday is a thing of beauty and has been running for almost two years. The Rathdow…

I condemn this week's attacks on Ukraine by Russia and particularly the deaths of civilians, including children. I extend my solidarity and that of the Social Democrats to all those affected by these latest acts in Russia's illegal war of aggression. Now more than ever, in particular in advance of our Presidency of the EU next year, it is crucial that Ireland assert itself at EU level on the issues we hold dear. Being a good European or member state does not mean being an uncritical one. That often gets lost in the…

As I mentioned towards the end of my contribution, a key provision related to the Council meeting concerns the suspension of visa-free travel for particular groups. Human rights is one of the bases offered for that. Has the Minister of State given any thought to using this tool to extend sanctions against Israeli settlers and those involved in genocide in the West Bank? The proposal regarding the tool is currently on the table, submitted as it was by President von der Leyen. Has the Minister of State given any thou…