Mr. Diarmaid Smyth:

That is a very good question. It is something we have looked at. Approximately 22 countries in Europe have a minimum wage and about seven have deductions on the basis of age. Germany has a type of exemption, which brings the number of the latter countries to eight. From memory, it is Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Malta, France and Cyprus. The United Kingdom also has age-related restrictions, but is coming back quite a bit; it had deductions for those aged under 24 and is coming back to 19 or 18. Within the EU, Ireland and the Netherlands are the only two countries with deductions for those aged 18 and 19. Other countries typically have deductions based on age, whether for seasonal, casual or new-entrant workers.