Ms Deborah Watters:

Dr. Farry has left the easy ones until the last: but seriously, these are the hard ones. We have already spoken with Dr. Farry about this. Part of the issue around the funding is the fragmented nature and the gap in funding. Because PEACE IV funding has ended, and because PEACE PLUS will not be operational on the ground, this has caused real difficulties for our programme. Ms Holohan spoke about the Strive programme ending. We are here in a period when Strive is no longer operational because of a lack of continuity funding. This is very difficult. It is difficult for communities and it is difficult for us in our space in Northern Ireland because of where we are with a very fragile system around government. Personally, I believe that we need to have a Government in place , an Assembly in place and an Executive in place. We need budgets agreed. We need to move forward.

Often, when there are going to be cuts it is the money going into communities that is cut first. People do not seem to value that funding as much. They do not see the long-term results and the impact of that. There is not as much of an outcry. Often, programmes like ours are not as politically connected as some other programmes. It is, therefore, easy to cut our money. This needs to be looked at. When there are going to be cuts I would say not to cut community first. The funders need to talk to communities and include them in the decision-making. A mechanism must be found, through whatever civic structure, to make sure that young people have a voice in the process and that communities have a voice in the process. The community must be connected with government in the same way we want to connect communities with schools.

On the issue of educational under-attainment among Protestant boys, I am fed up talking about this. It is 25 years on from the signing of the Good Friday Agreement and that situation has barely improved. There is something wrong with that. There is something wrong if we cannot make systemic change, revolutionise our education system, and ensure our poorest young men have opportunities, be they in apprenticeships or third level education. There is something going wrong with how we are doing business. It is not just a "me" problem or an "us" problem. It is a government problem.