Ms Jennie McShannon:

We will swap between us. In regard to the work that can be done, the Irish voluntary and community sectors are very proactive in engaging as much as they can in terms of reaching the community. Deputy Kelleher referred to the older generation becoming more isolated at the end of their lives. A major issue for us is that there so many local Irish centres.

Localism and locality are important to them. Their ability to travel decreases over time and this is evident in Irish clubs and community centres, particularly those in the north of England where people used to travel across the shires to attend a big Irish community centre. These centres have seen a decrease in footfall, mainly because people are ageing and less able to travel. It is important, therefore, that local services adapt. For example, Cricklewood Homeless Concern, now called Ashford Place, a facility with which many members are familiar, previously heaved with Irish people, but as they have aged, they have become less confident and many are unable to leave their homes. It is important to consider providing outreach services for such persons. The London Irish Centre previously conducted all of its services from the centre, but it now runs 17 lunch clubs and provides day care services around the city, while much work is still done in the centre.

I have spoken to some of the large social care providers and there is an emphasis on working with people on end of life planning and care. We have just started what we call a little Irish support partnership across infrastructure to help people to consider making wills and legacies. In part, this scheme is a way for people to feel supported by Irish community organisations; it is about getting people to think about end of life care and burial arrangements. We try to help them to think about what happens when they become ill.

On mental health, it was mentioned that some people had left Ireland owing to pregnancy, their sexual orientation and so on, but these issues have diminished in many ways. Irish society now promotes greater inclusion, which we welcome. Members ahve noted that the Irish now arriving are better educated and have high expectations of success in Britain. They are well received as an educated global commodity and do not face the same prejudice and discrimination in Britain that Irish people endured in the past. Much of this is due to the peace process in Northern Ireland, the positive relationship between Britain and Ireland and the young Irish people who travel to Britain. We are very proud of these young people, but there is a risk in assuming that they are all thriving. The Minister of State, Deputy Jimmy Deenihan, referred to services such as the immigrant counselling and psychotherapy service, ICAP, Mind Yourself and Irish Community Care Merseyside in Liverpool, through which we have seen that some young Irish people arriving in Britain are unprepared for the cultural differences they experience. Many do not realise how isolating it can be to live in a city like London and, while furthering their careers, some feel anxious and depressed. The research we conducted with the London Irish Centre in 2012, which specifically targeted the group we call the thriving young Irish, as opposed to the old and vulnerable, showed all of this. It is important that services adapt and are provided in different ways. It is not always a matter of providing advice and welfare services; it is also about social engagement and inclusion.