Mr. Dáire Hughes:

I thank the witnesses for their presentations and contributions today. It can be daunting to sit in a forum like this one and that they presented as professionally as they did was welcome. It is endearing and powerful to see young people being such powerful advocates for young persons with disabilities in particular and, more broadly, addressing of all the various questions today. I thank them for that.

There was nothing in their presentation that any reasonable person could disagree with. The only thing I would say is that, given the standard of the presentation and the scale of the issue, it is not appropriate for the witnesses to label themselves as future leaders. They should be impatient about this now. They should be leading on this campaign now. They have demonstrated the capacity and ability to do so and if there is anything the committee can do to lift that campaign, they should detail that to it.

The effects of exclusion and the barriers to individuals achieving their potential is an issue that affects every community on this island. The witnesses' demands are deliverable. Co-operation on a North-South basis is essential. It is in everyone's interest that young people with disabilities are given every opportunity to reach their potential in life and that carries through all of society. Co-design is just how good policy is made.

On training and resourcing, every state has the obligation to resource its education system to the point where everyone can access it to the fullest of their ability. The points on accessibility, accountability and defining opportunities beyond education is all incredibly powerful and I agree entirely with them. It strikes me, however, that both jurisdictions on this island are parties to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which states quite categorically that every disabled citizen has the right to full attainment of education and that resources and services need to be put in place to allow them to avail of that. The onus is on the states - the Governments - to resource our education services appropriately to ensure no citizen is left behind.

There is a broader point as well that more diverse and inclusive school communities are good for society as a whole because people get to interact with people from different backgrounds and with different challenges in life. They get to understand them and carry that with them through their lives, so it is incredibly important. That also carries on to the issue of the educational attainment and employment gap that the witnesses addressed in their presentation. It helps to narrow those problems.

The division of our island creates a problem in the uniformity of services and how they are applied. Partition affects education and educational attainment on this island. There is divergence of assessment and grading all the way up to third level. There are difficulties with recognition of qualifications. There are individual challenges in both jurisdictions, such as student accommodation. Workforce planning is divided. The effect of Brexit is that the opportunities that were once afforded to citizens in the North are no longer afforded to them and there is a general education gap in terms of attainment.

In that vein and on the back of the witnesses' presentation, I will ask a question. One of the roles of being a leader is planning for the future. What consideration have they given to what the future holds? What is the best set-up for young people to be able to avail of every opportunity afforded to them and reach their potential in life? Where do the opportunities lie in respect of education, economy, health or even socially and culturally? Ms Fleming wants to be in the pit, but she could be on the stage as well. They are the opportunities.

In what dynamic would the witnesses be in a position where they can maximise their opportunities and fulfil their potential? They have identified that greater co-operation is needed on the rights of persons with disabilities. I would be interested to know where they are going next. What is the next presentation, campaign and challenge that they want to bring to us?