Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am very conscious that we need to support young people and that is why we have all these programmes, including the EmployAbility service, that target young people who have difficulties getting back into the workplace. I met representatives of EmployAbility on Monday and they explained to me how when young people come in to the service, they are placed with an employer and sometimes there are problems. A typical example could be if somebody is suffering from an addiction and is trying to go to work. He or she might then miss an appointment with the addiction support service and slip back, and then the employer wonders why the person is not at work. When there is somebody who can connect and address those issues, there is a better chance of resolving it. The employer can give the employee time off to attend the service and there will be a better outcome. I am very conscious that we must provide those services for people who need to get back to work, and particularly young people.

There are some figures regarding youth unemployment. At present, approximately 43,000 PUP recipients are students, 90% of whom are under 25 years of age. Using the international definition of unemployment set in the International Labour Organization, students are generally not counted as unemployed as they are not considered part of the labour force because they are in education. Therefore, the inclusion of students has inflated the Covid-19-adjusted measure of youth unemployment.

Having said that, I am not taking away from the fact that we need to focus on getting our young people into work and skilling them. There are many jobs out there at the moment but some of them do not have those skills, so our further and higher education system is important. As the committee will be aware, the Minister with responsibility for that matter, Deputy Harris, has launched a new apprenticeship scheme and a number of supports are available in that regard to reskill and upskill, and to take on the jobs of the future. I am familiar with a number of projects from my time as Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation where the focus has to go on industry 4.0. We have to train people. While it may still be on the factory floor, it will be about telling the robots what they have to do. Many young people are very interested in programming and so on, and we have to capture their imagination, look to the future and use technology in every way we can.

The Vice Chairman mentioned the work placement experience programme and a number of other programmes we launched in the July stimulus package last year. Unfortunately, we were not able to launch some of them because the economy was closed and the jobs were not there. I will announce the pathways to work early next month and it will certainly be a case of all hands on deck. Every effort will be made to maximise the take-up of all the supports out there.

In recent budgets, we have targeted resources at those at most risk of poverty. In the most recent budget, the employment income limit of €425 was removed from the working lone parent benefit. We increased the qualified child allowance by €5 a week for children aged 12 and over and €2 a week for children up to age 12, while for pensioners and people with disabilities, we increased the living alone allowance. There a number of other supports we provided in the previous budget. It was targeted at those who needed it most and we wanted to help those most in need.

Regarding the indexation of pensions, as a first step the Department undertook a consultation process with a number of interested stakeholders throughout 2019 to hear their views. The outcome of these discussions was considered and, in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, the Department has developed proposals for setting a formal benchmark for contributory State pension payments. The roadmap for social inclusion outlines the potential approach currently under consideration, using what can be described as a smooth earning system that ensures that, over the long term, the relative value of welfare payments compared with market earnings will be maintained and, over any short-term period, the real value or purchasing power of these payments will be protected. I have asked my officials to continue to engage with their counterparts in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform with a view to progressing this work.