Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

I accept there are deep social and cultural factors which can hamper people's participation in various organisations. For example, a change in work and community patterns is a major factor in that. However, there are examples of sporting, cultural and social organisations which have an enormous impact on people's lives and whose members put in a considerable amount of effort into their work. It is not just the result of the work cycle. The busiest organisations are often run by people who, on the surface, should not have the time for them. At the same time, there are organisations whose members are not really involved in anything or are unemployed and who contribute a few hours to the organisation's activities but it does not work. I used to complain that the places in my constituency with the highest unemployment rates, which thankfully have decreased, had clubs that found it hardest to recruit managers and mentors to run them.

I accept that there are problems. Issues like personal responsibility, liability, access to support, advice, recognition and encouragement need to be examined. Public liability is probably the biggest factor in dissuading people from voluntary work because insurance issues crop up regardless of the work that is being done. If someone wishes to run a dance, music or contact sport class, the first thing he or she faces is insurance. A person almost ends up becoming an actuary rather than a trainer.

There is an enormous amount of goodwill in organisations and with some collective thinking, they can possibly give some new insights into the best way to proceed. It is the best practice of good organisations that will raise standards in other organisations.

Deputy Kenny's remarks about suicide and related issues are important. I read last week's debate in the House on suicide. While the figures are down on five or six years ago, they are still alarming. On questions the Deputy asked me, I recently read the detailed report of one of the alcohol association groups, which made 77 recommendations. The report's contents, including case studies on suicides, are devastating. I will not claim to be an expert in this field but isolation and alcohol, which are the causes in other countries, seem to be the growing causes here based on the evidence of some of these surveys. The matter requires more research but, subject to correction of the record, post mortems found that over 90% of suicide cases had alcohol in their systems. Of these, the amount of alcohol was large in almost 40%. Much of this is related to alcohol usage in the home. I am not an expert but the figures indicate a trend of isolation and not pub culture.

There is a connection that requires research, of which there is much according to last week's Official Report. The Government is rightly funding much of this research. Organisations have told me of their many good practices. They believe that, by working together, they can get young and old people in a wider base in the community to actively participate. This good practice could aid the lifestyles of young and old people in particular. Great work is being done with bowls, a hugely competitive game which does not involve great costs, during the winter for older people. Many people say a small amount of money for these areas would make for more active lifestyles, which is an interesting point.

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