Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
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It is hard to do this discussion justice at one meeting because there is so much going on. There is a lot going through my head. It is complex, as someone else said. I offer my support to the Intreo office, the idea behind it and the idea that people can sit and talk to someone. I am not referring to someone being behind a screen but a set-up whereby a person can sit in a room and speak to people at a one-to-one level. I have had this experience on several occasions in respect of people I have sent to the Intreo office in Ballyfermot, with which Deputy Conaghan is familiar. We are aware of the good work those employed there are doing. They believe their job is not simply about talking to people through a screen and this has made a major impact.

For myself, this is complex. There is a lot of stuff going on in my head. Anyway, I will bring this back to myself and where I came from.

I came from a street of 35 houses and the majority of the children on it left school at 14. It was just the way at the time. I left school because I could not pass Irish and, accordingly, could not pass my intermediate certificate. I was thrown out to the wolves. I left on a Friday and had a job the following Monday. I lived in an area with which Deputy Conaghan is familiar that had many manufacturing companies such as Lamb’s jam factory, Rowntree Mackintosh and Lyons Tea. Those without skills could automatically go into a job in these companies. My parents were fabulous, rearing eight of us and getting us from one stage to another before they passed away without any of us ever getting into trouble. That is a compliment we must pay to those of the older generation. They did not have much but Friday was an important day in our house when the wage packets were put on the table and everything was divided out whether it was for the gas, ESB or food bills. My poor Dad never got an awful lot but the money for a few smokes at the end of the day.

The area in which I live is deeply affected by poverty. It is not just family but individual poverty. There is nothing wrong with being poor. No one should be ashamed to say they are. The one word I detest the most is “disadvantaged” because it means much. For those who are told they live in a disadvantaged area, it throws them over the edge. When tackling long-term unemployment and dependency on social welfare, we have to make it worthwhile for people to decide to get the skills to get a job. Unfortunately for many caught in that bracket, we do not have the manufacturing companies that we did in the past into which they could slot. If I were starting over again tomorrow, I would insist everyone stays in school and that its structures would facilitate those who are not academic but have other qualities. Deputy Conaghan taught in a VEC college in my area. Many kids who did not have a strong academic leaning entered that college, came out with expert skills in woodwork or metalwork and were subsequently able to get jobs.

We need to rethink the whole idea of how we tackle long-term dependence on social welfare. Progress has been made in this area by the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection. She introduced a measure whereby those on the lone-parent benefit will have to come off it after their child reaches seven years of age. Several weeks ago, I met a young girl, a lone parent with two children, who has gone back to third level education to do catering. She informed me this was the best thing that ever happened to her. It has given her a confidence that she did not have before to ensure her children stay in school and go that extra bit. She does not get much, only €270 a month for maintenance. However, that little bit has given her the initiative and restored her self-esteem, a problem for many in such circumstances. The Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection has allowed it for those long-term unemployed to retain €29.50 of their benefits if they go back into employment. Hopefully, that will gather pace as it goes along.

Dr. Peter Rigney is correct about JobBridge and other schemes in that Departments do not talk to each other. One end does not know what the other is doing.