Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I wish to reply first to Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin's point about the app. Last year when we discussed how to reach people - they are not sitting down to watch the "Nine O'Clock News", as the Deputy and I know, rather they are in different places - one of the suggestions made was that an app be developed to give people, whether they were living in County Donegal or Dingle, at the press of a button telephone numbers to ring, details of where services were to be found and what was available. If the Deputy has seen that app, he will know that the range of services available is incredible. It is a question of co-ordination. I would love the people concerned to come and show us exactly what they are doing. It is something that could be transplanted or moved to any other area, with details of the relevant information.

In response to Deputy Billy Kelleher's point on schools, we conducted research into what was made available in schools because we were interested in reaching young people where they are.

We discovered that a whole-of-school approach is required and that is what we launched and developed. The entire school is trained in what to do if a young boy or girl approaches a member of staff. When I had this discussion previously with Deputy Boyd Barrett he nodded profusely, probably because he had had a similar experience to mine. What if a student does not get on with the designated person? What if the principal put him or her outside the door with an instruction to approach the designated person and the student is feeling down because he or she feels unable to speak to that person? Surely the caretaker and the secretary should also be involved.

In regard to the repeated accusation that we waited a year before appointing a new director, that office was never vacant. A women called Catherine Brogan did an incredible job in dealing with much of the development work, the outcome of which we are now seeing. We now have a new director who is making further progress on that work. It is not as simple as finding the right person for the right job. The work moves on and the different groups with whom we must deal also move on. This will not be the last Government to deal with the issue. It is a community issue and all of us must play a role. It cannot be left up to one person in an office in a school.

See this speech in context