Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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We will not go there. I am conscious of that. I do have a particular interest in this subject because I have put down numerous parliamentary questions on the subject, as some of our guests will know. We have had information that children did not seem to have a proper sex education in school. That is a bland statement that may be right or it may be wrong. I got an email or text from somebody, and we have to take these things as they are, to the effect that a 14 year old child who had been raped did not do anything about it, did not know what the consequences were and did not have a conversation with her parents. The parents need to be involved in the programme of sex education in schools as well. The Well-Being programme is welcome. It needs to be comprehensive. It needs to identify all the potential threats to the child. The child needs to be protected. We have had enough incidents in this country over the past number of years, and in many other countries, where there is "trafficking", for want of a better description. The grooming of children is quite evident and is a serious threat to their well-being.

The next part is how to get the information to children. I see nothing wrong with the system as the witnesses present it, as long as it gets to children and their parents. If it does not get to parents as well, then it is a waste of time. The child will go home from school and ask the parents, who may not be receptive to adding to it. It should include parents. We are a multicultural society now so the ethos is not as important as it was. However, it is important that we get the message across to parents regardless of background and ethos. We need to put special emphasis on that.

I got a shock a couple of years ago when I put down a question in relation to children who were bullied in school and abused through the Internet and social media. It is horrific. Particularly horrific is the number of children who self-harmed or attempted self-harm as a result of that kind of activity in their schools. There were repeated attempts at self-harm which meant that the abuse was still going on. I remember that the ages were between ten and 14 which is really alarming. That cohort of children in that age group needs to be concentrated on particularly in order to identify what the threats are, whether via the Internet, social media or predators. It is a huge issue that needs to be dealt with. The child needs to know, boys and girls, what the threat is and if there is a threat. That is not to create suspicion of society but to have a genuine knowledge of what is required in order for them to become balanced citizens.

In relation to youth services, if we can talk about this as well, I want to compliment in particular-----