Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Evan, Niamh, Karina and Ashling for their contributions. I will focus in particular on Karina and Ashling if they do not mind. They shared with us, and touched a raw nerve with us, as regards their lived experiences, which were very powerful. We have listened and heard. We have had similar representations in the past about CAMHS and mental health. These contributions are very powerful, especially when they come from people's lived experience. I thank Karina and Ashling for that. It is not easy to share an outpouring of their own issues without getting terribly emotional about them, but they certainly struck a chord with us. We promise them this issue is something we will pursue.

I have one question for all the speakers or whoever would like to contribute. They will have heard of Gaisce, the President's Award, and the Duke of Edinburgh's Award. For so long, we have had two different organisations doing the same thing in both parts of the island of Ireland. In recent years, the Duke of Edinburgh's Award has agreed that people in the South can consider and pursue it and, vice versa, those in Northern Ireland can pursue Gaisce. There has been much more take-up on that. If any of the last three or four speakers are familiar with or have been involved in those programmes, they might share that experience. I believe those programmes are very positive and I would like a unified awards system. They might share their experiences with us.