Mr. Matthew Ryan:

To answer the first question, on how we can engage students, our view is simple: talk to them. They always have plenty to say. People should not be afraid to ask them for their opinion. We are often afraid of asking students what they think because there are differing opinions, opinions clash and everybody has something to say, but we should celebrate that as opposed to keeping discussion with students as a reserve in case it is needed. It is not always easy. If there are 800 students in a school, talking to all of them is not easy. Again, the establishment of student councils cannot be understated, nor can supporting them appropriately. Councils can articulate their students' views and talk to their peers. Nobody knows what students are going through apart from students.

On the question on gardaí and teachers, even from some of the comments made today we can see that, from generation to generation, there are many out-of-touch views on what youth are experiencing. We are often spoken for as opposed to spoken to in a conversation. We are often told bullying is bad and that we should not bully because it hurts people rather than being supported and having our expectations met.

The last point I would like to make is one I have tried to raise a lot today. It is all about the importance of language in this whole thing, especially when it comes to suicide, which can be the result of bullying. When we say things like "committing suicide", we insinuate that suicide is a crime or a sin. Making simple changes like this to our language can make a great difference to students. Even this morning, when we were advised about parliamentary privilege, we were asked not to mention "him or her" by name. This could be changed to "them". Simple changes to our language allow us to include more people and, to bring it back to society, make society a more inclusive place. Schools and society are massively interlinked. If society is more open, young people see that and bring it back into their schools.