Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of measures her Department was tasked with in the Action Plan for Jobs 2012; the number completed prior to the publication of the Action Plan for Jobs 2013; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17296/13]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of measures her Department has been tasked with in the Action Plan for Jobs 2013 [17359/13]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I proposed to take Questions Nos. 114 and 140 together.

Action Plan for Jobs 2013 contains actions relating to my Department in two specific areas: child care and youth work. With regard to the action relating to child care, including action 235 in the current 2013 plan, I can confirm that in budget 2013, I announced, together with the Minister for Social Protection, a new €14 million investment in an after-school child care programme. This programme will deliver 6,000 after-school places and will provide an important support to qualifying parents in low income families wishing to take up employment. This is a joint initiative between myself and the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Joan Burton. A pilot will be launched shortly in seven areas with a view to a national roll-out in September 2013.

As regards actions to review structures and funding of youth work services to ensure they support the development of the skills needed by enterprises, my Department has worked with youth services on this objective, and finalisation of a children and young people's policy framework is ongoing and will inform a further review of youth programmes. There is growing recognition of the potential of youth work services to contribute to activation measures. I am very interested in exploring this area further because I believe the youth work services can do a great deal to enhance the employability of young people, especially young people who are very vulnerable and are not engaged in education, employment or training. The youth guarantee will be an important element in reaching out to those young people. Youth work services, while complementary to formal education, reach out to young people in other settings and may be in a position to provide a value-added element that is not, perhaps, available in other activation programmes through the outreach and support they give to young people. I recently met the National Youth Council of Ireland to discuss possible specific approaches to employment for young people.

Action 232 of Action Plan for Jobs 2013 relates specifically to Ireland's Presidency of the EU. As President of the EU Council of Youth Ministers, I have ensured a priority focus on the contribution of quality youth work to the development, well-being and social inclusion of young people and to maximise the potential for youth policy to address the goals of Europe 2020 with specific regard to youth unemployment. We held an Irish EU youth conference during March in which we had a dialogue and consultation with young people around Europe. Approximately 300 young people attended the conference but thousands were consulted throughout Europe before the conference to ask for their specific views on initiatives that would help young people prepare for employment and to be ready to take up employment, education or training. I will also host an expert group meeting in Dublin in June to discuss the issue of youth unemployment and social inclusion.

My Department is working actively to support delivery of the action plan for jobs. I am informed that, to date, there has been ongoing achievement of over 90% of the action plan commitments across Government.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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We all agree it is critical that the issue of unemployment, particularly youth unemployment, is given the attention it deserves. The Minister said that 90% of the actions in the action plan have been implemented, but one of the Minister's actions must be in the 10% bracket. The Minister was to deliver on two actions in 2012, but she has only managed to deliver on one of them.

The Minister referred to affordable child care, which will come to fruition in seven areas around the country in September, and I welcome that.

The 2012 action plan states, in the context of new children and young people's strategy, that, "The Government will review the structures and funding of youth work and support services to ensure that they support the development of the skills needed by enterprise". What is the position regarding the children and young people's policy framework? Will it be completed in early 2013, as was previously stated? Will the Minister confirm what "early 2013" means? Is it the first or second quarter or will it be completed following the summer recess?

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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The overall policy areas we are examining in the context of implementing a national strategy for children and young people involve the early years group as well as the older age group. The early years group has met and worked hard on its report and much work has been done. We consulted thousands of children. I received a report following a consultation with 68,000 children in primary schools and there has been other consultation. A great deal of work, therefore, is being done. I expect to receive the early years strategy in July and work is ongoing on the other elements of policy for young people. I am not in a position to give the precise date I will have the overall plan but it will be this year. I am in a position to outline exactly when I will have the framework completed for each of the different age groups. Substantial work is going on regarding each of them and significant consultation has taken place with young people. We have been informed by young people around the country about what they would like to see in the strategy. People are suggesting more and more areas that need to be included in it and I want to ensure it is as comprehensive as possible.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Consultation is all very well but action is required. A serious number of young people are unemployed and that needs to be addressed. I quoted from the final progress report on the 2012 action plan for jobs and I am not making this up. During the past week, I visited a factory in Mullingar where 90 people are employed. The owners said they are finding it difficult to find people with the appropriate skills. They want to employ more people but they cannot find young people with the appropriate skills. The Minister needs to ensure this issue gets the priority it deserves and appropriate funding is put in place to ensure the development of the skills match required by enterprises that are seeking to create employment. Less consultation and more action in this regard is necessary.

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I referred to consultation in the context of the development of the national plan and the Deputy will agree it is necessary to consult young people and hear their views about what needs to change. However, I agree with him about the need to focus on youth unemployment. Clearly, it is a critical area but matching skills is a challenge at European level as well with 2 million jobs available for which the skills match has not been met. It is a major issue at both European and national level.

With regard to the action plan for jobs, I was specifically asked to examine the role youth work can play. A sum of almost €53 million is allocated to youth work and young people are clearly concerned about their employment prospects. I have focused on examining the role youth work can play in supporting young people in their journey towards employment, education or training during the Presidency and I believe the youth work sector can do even more. There are many initiatives around the country through which youth work services are developing the skills mix to which the Deputy referred for young people and working with them to ensure that when jobs become available, they are able to avail of them. However, many young people who are most at risk of unemployment need the opportunity to build their confidence, develop skills and be supported in applying for jobs, all of which can be provided by the youth work sector.

I am examining this issue and working with the National Youth Council of Ireland which has suggested a range of further initiatives in this area. Work and consultations are ongoing.