Joe Neville (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is always difficult to follow Deputy Ward, especially when he has been so knowledgeable of and engaging on the topic under discussion. I have been listening for the past couple of hours, both up in my office and since I came into the Chamber. There were similarities with what many people said, but I was struck by one statement. Someone said that this is quite a simple problem. It is anything but simple. I will not say who said it, but it is anything but a simple problem. It is very complex. The solutions are many, and the causes are also many. The situation is difficult to break down.

As Deputy Ward said, there are some opportunities. He said it will not be easy; we know it will not be easy or cheap. We know we have to make an effort. As many of us know, as I stated last week on a similar issue and as Deputy Roche alluded to, we face difficulties with social media. It is one of the new issues we face. No previous generation has ever faced those sorts of complications and the influences that come with them. That is part of the problem. As a parent and a coach who works in schools, I see the difficulties facing young people. We also know the opportunities and education facilities that need to be available, and we are aware that we need to encourage young people. There is full employment. We have a good education system that is the envy of other countries. The skill sets can be there. We need to push all our people and show them all the opportunities – educational courses, skills, plumbing trades – we can show them. These are important.

A number of Deputies referred to the need for facilities. As someone who has been heavily involved in their community as director of both a youth centre and a sports centre, I know the importance of sports facilities. However, sport is not a solution for every child. A child who does not want to play sport might also not want to be in these centres. They want to just hang out with their friends. We need to reach everyone.

If there are indications that a young person may be going down the wrong path, community gardaí are important. I see the importance of community gardaí in my area in Leixlip, Celbridge and Maynooth. They do Trojan work. The knowledge they have of the individual people and all of those in the community, be it councillors, TDs, people who work in shops, schools and young people, is impressive. What they do is impressive. I spoke yesterday in the Dáil and to the Taoiseach about the importance of supporting local gardaí and ensuring that we have the numbers. Part of that is community supports. That is why it is so important. If we do not have gardaí in place, we have to respond to issues after they happen. It is about prevention. We are trying to prevent people from going down a certain path. That is where the community garda is important. We know of the involvement of different groups with young people. In North Kildare, I see the importance of In Sync, previously Kildare Youth Services. It is involved with families, groups, community centres and individual estates. The work it does can stop young people going down certain paths. That is where we want to get to. Young people are the future of the country. How we support them will be evidence of the success or otherwise of this Government.

As a parent, a coach and a public representative, in the past I have done the best I could locally. It is important on the national stage to continue to push that forward. I will push the Government where I can to get involved with our young people, be it in the form of outreach on football pitches or in community centres. That is one way. Supporting our gardaí is another. It is incumbent on us to ensure that there are opportunities for all our young people in any way they want or need.

Ireland is a successful country. We talk about the wealth we have but we need to make sure it is channelled to the right places. I will continue to ensure that there are opportunities for our young people to be diverted from crime and that they have all the opportunities they need to live successful lives.

See this speech in context