Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I apologise for being a little late. Please feel free to interrupt if I ask a question that has been answered.

I am stunned by the figure showing that 56% of those aged between 17 and 25 years in Northern Ireland are not registered to vote. I spoke to a trade unionist in Australia where voting is compulsory. While I have never advocated compulsory voting, it could be a long-term strategy because the person with whom I spoke told me it worked in Australia. Political systems gravitate towards those who tend to vote, namely, the middle class, the wealthy and older people. Finance is never directed towards areas and age groups which do not use their franchise to the same extent. Is there potential to have a conversation about moving towards an understanding of how different international electoral models have worked? The trade unionist indicated that voter turnout in the most disadvantaged areas which was traditionally poor had changed completely and that the political system was moving towards meeting the needs of this section of society now that it was much more engaged. I ask our guests to comment on this issue.

On the attitudes of young people to voting, I am involved in a project with transition year students in local secondary schools. It is related to the constitutional convention and known as the "Convention in Your Classroom". I find it remarkable that students in only one of the schools I have visited as part of the project are in favour of lowering the voting age. They are all au fait with social issues and happy to voice opinions on them. However, they told me that young people under the age of 18 years did not understand or have an interest in political issues, although they tended to be more in tune with what was going on when they reached 18 years. I was surprised that young people of 16 and 17 years were not eager to get involved in politics and have their voices heard. Perhaps there is a disconnect between them and the political system. The problem that arises when the political system tries to fill this gap is the contamination effect created by political parties becoming involved in voter registration. There is a danger that politicisation will take on a party political dimension.

I am not sure if the issue of integrated schooling has been discussed. The committee has received a number of presentations on the issue and I am aware the various churches are not keen on the idea. We also received a presentation from loyalist community leaders, one of whom was strongly opposed to the idea of integrated schooling. While the Republic does not have a great record on integrated schooling, we are moving towards a model of diverse school patronage. Is the fact that children from different religions do not attend the same schools part of the problem in the North?

On the most recent violence and the discovery that 13 year old children were involved, time and again we have heard that those in their mid-teens and early 20s have no idea what happened during the Troubles and have a sense that they missed out on some of the action. I am not trying to be dismissive or insulting, but that is the feedback we received from some community leaders. I ask the delegation to comment.

Literacy, knowledge and learning are surely the most fundamental building blocks for anyone to be able to engage in the labour market or improve himself or herself in education. The statistics for literacy in the North are probably similar to those in the South, especially for young men who have a difficulty in this regard. Perhaps the delegation might comment.

The sexualisation and commercialisation of young women is not a problem exclusive to Northern Ireland or the Republic. Having taught in a primary school for girls for 11 years, it is my view that young girls' sense of themselves and their place in society has regressed. They are very much aware of their sexual power at a much earlier age. Commercial interests demand that childhood be shortened in order that they can make money out of children as commercial entities. A 12 year old who should have five or six years of childhood left is now deciding which boy band member she fancies, which make-up she should wear and what colour her hair should be. Does the delegation wish to comment on the sexualisation of young women and the fact that they are contextualising themselves in terms of their sexual power? I find that women and young girls are in a less positive place than they were ten, 15 or 20 years ago when, for example, Mary Robinson was elevated to the Presidency. I do not know if the organisations have tapped into that area or if they have a comment on it. I thank the Chairman for the opportunity to contribute.