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

I thank the contributors. I confirm I am in Leinster House. As I have said, we have been having these meetings for quite a number of weeks now, and every week we get increasingly impressive contributions. I am always advised not to say it, but I was a school principal for a time. The point Senator O'Reilly made is a most important one. As we all know, bullying comes from a place of deep unhappiness. Most of the conflicts I dealt with with children, whether in the case of bullying or negative interactions, would have been with children who were hungry. Before getting into who had done what, if I asked them a very simple question, namely, whether they had had their breakfast that morning, more often than not they would not have had their breakfast. They would not have had anything to eat since whatever time on the previous night. It may have been 12 hours since they had eaten something. Therefore, a teacher is always aware of issues as basic as food, the comfort of the child in the classroom and whatever is going on at home. If the child is comfortable in his or her own skin and is feeling secure, he or she is less likely to lash out. Having said that, bullying does not come exclusively from a place of poverty. There are any number of middle-class children who also engage in it.

I ask the witnesses the following in turn. In respect of the online space, is it the witnesses' view that bullying has moved online or that it is an extra layer on top of what they are already dealing with? Previous contributors to this committee have stated there is a lack of data and that schools need to provide more data as to the nature of bullying, for example, in respect of the age, gender and ethnicity profiles. Would the witnesses agree with that? How can we deal with that? I also ask the witnesses to speak to the need for a specific racism policy in schools and more guidance from the Department. Some schools have policies and procedures that are outdated. The witnesses have spoken about waiting lists of 12 to 18 months for child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS. The more things change, the more they stay the same. With those questions in mind, I would appreciate the responses of the witnesses.