Mr. Shaun Henry:

We are mindful that any PEACE programme should be additional to normal government expenditure. We are particularly mindful of that in the context of education.

During the public consultation process to which Mr. Colgan referred, the common and consistent theme was that any future PEACE programme should target youth and young people. We believe there are opportunities within the formal education and informal youth sectors through which young people from different backgrounds could share their education and youth experiences. We are mindful of the limited budgets that will be available within the PEACE programme and are trying, therefore, to identify suitable interventions within the education and youth sectors that provide real added value and would not otherwise happen. We are hopeful that we will be able to identify such interventions. It is important that young people coming out of the education system are given opportunities to have sustained and quality experience sharing of education, utilising the informal sector of youth clubs and youth organisations to create these types of opportunities. We are working through this process with the relevant Departments in Ireland and Northern Ireland.