Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Chair has raised something that can be very difficult, particularly for people who might be homeless or who might not have the facility to have a smartphone. People might not have access to a computer or tablet or whatever is required. Last year, I was delighted to see my colleague, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Harris, roll out a significant amount of funding to support young people in colleges in being able to buy a laptop or tablet or whatever they needed. I was delighted to see this funding has been renewed for this year. This will certainly support younger people. Those in school have access to the schools programme. I accept there are challenges for people, particularly those who might not have grown up in the digital age.

Some people might not have access to a smartphone. That can prove difficult. I met an organisation recently and was told that it is, sometimes, much harder to make contact with people using a blended approach as opposed to face-to-face consultations. That is something we will look at. It is a challenge. If the committee has any ideas on how to go about tackling it I would welcome them.