David Norris (Independent)

I seek to share time with Senator Pearse Doherty.

I welcome the Minister of State and the initiative of taking these statements but I hope the matter goes further because this is a serious problem. I also welcome the fact that we have progressed from a time when we thought there was no suicide in Ireland. The subject was covered up and we used to cock a snook, so to speak, at Sweden and criticise liberal, Protestant northern European countries where people supposedly commit suicide like lemmings. Now we know some of what is happening with regard to suicide in Ireland and this is a hopeful development because facing reality is the first step.

The situation regarding suicide is nightmarish for individuals who feel they must end their lives. This is especially clear on wonderful days such as this when everything looks so beautiful in places like Merrion Square. The idea that a person can be driven to such despair that he or she would seek to end his or her experience of this world is terrible. The impact on families is crushing and they often blame themselves. Further services should be provided in this respect. Copycat suicides are frightful and seem contagious. I know of a family of which three members committed suicide.

The elephant in the room regarding a debate on suicide in Ireland was mentioned by Senator Fitzgerald. I am glad she did so, but I wish there were more references. One of the most significant elements in suicide is the issue of sexual orientation and sexual identity. I honour President McAleese for her recent passionate speech in County Kerry in which she referred to this matter. She stated:

[Homosexuality for young gay men] is a discovery, not a decision and for many it is a discovery which is made against a backdrop where ... they have long encountered anti-gay attitudes which will do little to help them deal openly and healthily with their own sexuality.

As the multiplier effect relating to suicide is significant for young gay people and is an established fact, I will outline supporting research, of which I hope the Minister of State is aware.

The Minister of State said 'Reach Out — National Strategy for Action on Suicide Prevention 2005-2014 states: "Information on suicidal behaviour is vital in order to guide the planning of effective services and supports".' That is correct, but does the Minister of State possess such information? Does he have such information with regard to young gay people, who are more vulnerable to suicide by a multiplier of six? If so, what is he doing about the situation? Why was it that it was left to Belong To, the gay youth group, to contact the Minister of State's organisation to be included in the survey? That is what I mean when I refer to the elephant in the room.

This issue is not about some old weirdo from North Great George's Street with a background in Trinity College. I was contacted by the wonderful Doherty family in Donegal who asked me to raise this matter. They had a marvellous young son, Alan Doherty, who was 32 years old and had been bullied in school because he was gay. He wanted to become a priest but was told that he could not do so by the church and was later shunned by some members of it. He moved to England, had a relationship that dissolved, found balance and returned to Ireland. Within a short time of coming back and successfully running an art gallery, he was taunted by schoolchildren and others on the streets of his home town. He killed himself shortly thereafter. His family wrote to me and asked me to raise the issue and I was the only Member of either House who replied to them, which is shameful.

We must acknowledge this problem, examine it and look at the relevant research and statistics because it is very worrying. Belong To is a remarkable group that produced some information for me on young people who access its services. Such young people are concerned at being bullied and victimised in their schools and communities. They perceive a lack of peer support and fear communicating the problem to family members so that, unlike other minority youths, they may not receive support from such a source. Regarding education, they see a lack of inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender sexuality in existing school programmes. They feel poor self-image can be a consequence of negative societal attitudes to their sexual identities and may internalise homophobia owing to their experiences of it. They will see homophobia in school and the church.

I wrote in the Irish newspapers about the homophobic diatribes of the then Cardinal Ratzinger that created an intimidating storm. I was approached in this regard, in a work context, by a decent young man who I did not even know was gay. He told me not to let anyone stop me speaking out because when he was 19 years old such stuff was read from the pulpit of his church and caused him to try to kill himself. He said he would be dead but that his mother found him in time. He asked me not to stop speaking out because nobody else would.

There is a great deal of homophobic bullying in schools and teachers are aware of it but do not respond. In this regard, is it appropriate that the State funds schools controlled by a church that has shown itself unworthy of working in the area owing to its handling of serious child abuse while simultaneously engaging in homophobic attacks from the pulpit? The church was given an exemption from equality legislation by a mealy-mouthed Government. In light of the Ferns Report, it is important that we examine whether that exemption should continue.

The school of education studies at Dublin City University, DCU, conducted a study that found that 94% of social, personal and health education, SPHE, teachers in single sex schools and 82% in co-educational schools were aware of verbal homophobic bullying in their schools. The study also found that 25% of these teachers in single sex schools and 17% in co-educational schools were aware of instances of physical homophobic bullying. In the study, 90% of teachers indicated that there was no mention of gay and lesbian related bullying in their schools' bullying policies. This is a catastrophic failure because we know there is such bullying, we know the terms of abuse, we know it can be both verbal and physical and we know that the teachers know this and do nothing about it. It is the responsibility of the Minister of State's Department to address this situation as a matter of urgency if we are serious about suicide, especially when one considers the multiplier effect.

My old university, Trinity College Dublin, conducted a study that found that 50% of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth had been bullied at school in the past three months, which compares with 16% of the general youth population. Of this group, 76% had experienced verbal abuse, 39% had experienced physical abuse and one in ten had left education earlier than they would have wished. This is an appalling situation and we know that, regarding suicide, there is at least a sixfold multiplier effect for young gay people.

These figures are reflected outside the State. An American study and a Northern Ireland study also lie behind what I have quoted. The Government must research this area because we have done no research so far. Helen McNamee's study of 2006 from Northern Ireland found that more than one quarter of young gay respondents had attempted suicide, of whom 70.8% had attempted suicide more than once. Almost three quarters of respondents had thought about taking their own lives, 80.5% of whom said it was related to same sex attraction. Almost one third had self-harmed, 64.4% of whom said it was related to same sex attraction and over one third had been diagnosed with a mental health problem, the most frequent diagnosis being depression.

I appeal to the House, in light of this catastrophic situation, not to just sit or make speeches. We know there are young, vulnerable people being bullied in our schools and people being driven to the point of suicide. We can do something about the situation, but we must stop being mealy-mouthed. We must stand up to the bullies, not only those in the schoolyard, but also those in the churches.