Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday the Government launched its first action report on bullying. It was launched with great fanfare and with a commitment to allocate €500,000 in dedicated funding this year. This report is to be welcomed and all the recommendations should be fully implemented. One recommendation is to spend time training parents to counter cyberbullying. Following the cuts to the guidance counselling services, however, secondary schools across the country are now expected to prevent bullying with one hand tied behind their backs.

These actions do not add up. They send the wrong message completely. The service provided by guidance counsellors in our schools was rightly built up over the past 20 years. In budget 2012 the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, removed the specific allocation for the country's 700 guidance teachers from second level schools. He told them that guidance counselling and provision should now be provided out of the general teacher allocations to schools. This was effectively a €35 million cut in guidance counselling services. That is matched with the allocation this year of €500,000 to the action report on bullying. It totally undermines any genuine attempt to tackle bullying in our schools. Cutting guidance counsellors cuts those who provide a firefighting service at second level.

Every Deputy is aware of the worrying surge in mental health problems among our young people. Ireland unfortunately has one of the highest suicide rates among youth in Europe. Does the Taoiseach accept that the Minister for Education and Skills made a serious mistake in cutting the guidance counsellor allocation in last year's budget? If this Government is serious about addressing the growing problem of bullying and youth mental health problems will it consider reinstating the guidance counsellors in second level schools?

See this speech in context