Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will not advise Deputy Sherlock as to what the chair-designate's definition of success in a given football calendar is if he is a Spurs supporter, but I do think we have somebody who is eminently qualified.

I have two questions. Ms Yiasouma mentioned in her address that significant progress had been made and it was her ambition to build on it. Maybe she could give us a flavour, looking in from the outside, as to what she believes to be not so much the remaining steps, because I think it is always a journey of continuous improvement, but the immediate steps in which she might be interested in continuing that progress or her priorities on that journey.

The second question I wish to raise is probably more philosophical. We live in a very materialistic society. I think particularly of young people and the pressures they face in terms of the always-on social media and the always-on exposure to endless advertisements for things they want, whether the latest iPhone or the latest pair of runners. Does the chair-designate agree that a missing piece in some young people's lives is some form of spiritual guidance and leadership? I am not making a case for a particular spiritual direction but I would like to know, in the context of leading Oberstown detention centre, if Ms Yiasouma sees a role under her stewardship for appropriate spiritual guidance for young people. Whether in Oberstown or not, it is something that has diminished significantly in people's lives generally, probably more so in young people's lives in more recent times, and I am not sure that is a good thing. The world is not just about material or physical things; it is about values and appropriate spiritual leadership. I make the point in the broadest possible sense. I am not being prescriptive in that regard but I think that is generally missing or less prevalent than it used to be and probably is something from which young people, in particular, could benefit. I would like to know the chair-designate's views on that.

I concur with others that we have found somebody who can do a very good job. I wish Ms Yiasouma well. It is not an easy task. She will carry the can in public for Oberstown in the accountability sense. She undertakes a very responsible, important job, and I wish her well with it.