Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)

The Minister of State is focusing on contraception but he should focus on education. It might surprise him to know that 13 and 14 year olds regularly engage in sexual activity. Three factors are involved here: many teenage girls suffer low-esteem and allow themselves to be coerced in sexual activity, there is a high rate of consumption of alcohol and drugs by teenagers and they are ignorant of sex education. In many cases they have no clue as to what is happening or what they are doing. That is because there is no proper sex education. The Government's sex education policy is fumbling around in the same way that teenagers fumble around when engaged in sexual activity. That is the area on which the Minister of State should focus. We will have moved in 15 years from having to provide sex education in secondary schools to providing it in primary schools if we do not tackle the issue. I would appreciate the Minister of State's opinion on that comment.

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