Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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The first item on our agenda is a discussion on the social dimension of Economic and Monetary Union, EMU. On behalf of the joint committee, I am delighted to welcome Mr. James Doorley, deputy director of the National Youth Council of Ireland, and Ms Orla O'Connor, director of the National Women's Council of Ireland.

There is a growing debate at European level on the role social indicators could play in Economic and Monetary Union. A recent European Commission communication on the social dimension of EMU outlined how such social indicators might form part of the formal economic surveillance under way as part of EMU. These indicators include unemployment, youth unemployment rates, changes in rates of disposable income, at-risk of poverty rates and inequality. In the past few weeks a range of speakers have come before the committee to talk about their views in this regard, including the Irish Business Employers Confederation, IBEC; the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, ICTU; the Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed, INOU; and Social Justice Ireland. Today we are holding the final meeting in our deliberations. We look forward to hearing the valuable perspectives of the National Youth Council of Ireland and the National Women's Council of Ireland. The views expressed will form part of a submission we will be making on the committee's political contribution to the European institutions on the social dimension of EMU. We hope to make that submission in the next few days to give them time to review it.

Before we begin, I remind members of the long-standing ruling of the Chair that they should not comment on, make charges against or criticise a person outside the Houses or an official either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable. By virtue of section 17(2)(l) of the Defamation Act 2009, witnesses are protected by absolute privilege in respect of their evidence to the committee. However, if they are directed by it to cease giving evidence on a particular matter and continue to do so, they are entitled thereafter only to qualified privilege in respect of their evidence.

I invite Ms Orla O'Connor, the director of the National Women's Council, to make her presentation to the committee.