Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My three brief questions relate to issues that have been raised by other members. In the experience of the witnesses, are external providers going into ethos-based schools to provide training on matters that would be considered to be outside the ethos of such schools? The question of external people coming in also arises when we talk about the importance of taking a whole-school approach. The implementation of the RSE curriculum and the teaching of modules with regard to growing up as an LGBT person should be considered when a school is having a whole-school inspection, but my understanding is that such matters are not currently considered during such inspections. Do the witnesses think it would be a good idea to develop that? We regularly debate issues of cybersafety and cybersecurity, but we tend to forget about the ongoing presence of print media. Is the emphasis on the digital age causing us to ignore the many magazines that are readily available when young people go into our large newsagents?

When I attended a Comhairle na nÓg day in County Kildare in 2014, I was struck by the fact that the main issue raised by young people from different school backgrounds and different rural and urban areas across the country was their huge concern that their peers in the LGBT space were not getting the support they needed, were at risk of being bullied by their peers and were suffering from a lack of respect and understanding. It was striking to learn that 43% of schools were not delivering anything in relation to LGBT issues. It is still particularly concerning. What can we do to help young people who are struggling? The stark statistics we have heard regarding young people's struggles with all aspects of growing up have made it clear that those who are having to deal with sexual identity issues feel very alone. Thursday is the national day against homophobia. This is something we need to stress and support as much as we can. It strikes me that have had many discussions in this session and previously about collaboration between students and parents. As Ms Byrnes has said, it will take another generation before we have matured on a societal and cultural basis to tackle this issue in a meaningful way. It is a generation away. We have a duty to try to bridge that gap within this generation. I will call the witnesses to respond in the order in which they put their hands up, after which there will be an opportunity for further questions.