Jimmy Harte (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Professor Pissarides. The phrase, "That is no country for old men", comes from the poem, Sailing to Byzantium, by William Butler Yeats. He was a Member of this House and it is appropriate his lines were spoken. I agree with the Senator that this is not a country for young people at the minute and neither is Europe a continent for young people. The rates of youth unemployment in the United States are much lower compared to the rates in Europe.

Is this a result of how it is measured, or is there an actual difference? I know from my sons and daughter that many young people who have graduated do not believe they will end up working in the discipline in which they graduated. Many must take up work outside their areas of study. Does Professor Pissarides believe that people are in the wrong disciplines or that jobs are not available? Should we focus on more specific degrees so that students will be able to work in defined areas? More than half of the last generation of graduates have ended up in other fields of employment. Is that a problem specific to Ireland or Europe or is it a global problem?