Ms Vanessa Mulhall:

We thank the committee for giving us the opportunity to respond to the White Paper on the future of Europe. I will make the introductions and then I will hand over to my colleague, Mr. Nesirky, to outline our views on the White Paper's scenarios. I will then conclude with a few examples of where the European Union can work with member states on social policy to improve the lives of young people in Europe and beyond. We propose to discuss the various scenarios in the White Paper and offer an idea of how young people could review each of the five potential directions for Europe outlined within.

We are representing the National Youth Council of Ireland, NYCI, which is the representative body for the voluntary youth sector, comprising 49 organisations working in the community with up to 38,000 young people aged ten to 24 years. On the European level, NYCI is a member of the European Youth Forum and, in partnership with the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, implements the EU structured dialogue process. In Ireland we call it "Young Voices" because it is more appealing to young people. The EU structured dialogue process is an engagement between young people and policymakers in order to implement the priorities of European policy co-operation and to make young people’s voices heard in the European policy-shaping process. This gives young people a voice on the European stage and also on a national stage, as we try to implement all recommendations on a national and local level. It gives the NYCI an opportunity to link into the perspective of young people across the EU member states.

We have attended many consultations at European level on the future of Europe, but also on a range of different issues. Mr. Nesirky and I have been speaking about the future of Europe and engaging in that. We have had consultations with young people from throughout Ireland on the topic. Mr. Nesirky and I have been involved in many consultations on a national and local level and today we will give feedback from the outcomes of these consultations. What we are saying is not just our view, it is the view of young people with whom we have been engaging.

Mr. Nesirky will now discuss each direction offered in this report and review it in the context of impact on young people.