Jillian van Turnhout (Independent) | Oireachtas source

We need to be careful. All too often we talk about the children and say they need to be nice to one another and kind to one another, yet it is considered acceptable for me to shout and use abusive language and tell another person that he or she is stupid because I know better. We need to challenge ourselves as adults about our behaviour.

It is important that the curriculum is not used in its standard form. Earlier the National Youth Council of Ireland gave a presentation on youth arts and Roscommon Youth Theatre performed an eight to ten minute play on bullying. It was powerful and the young people showed empathy. By preparing and writing the play they were able to get an understanding of the different sides of what happens in a bullying situation. Whether it is sport, as Senator Eamonn Coghlan said, or arts we must use different ways to address the issue.

There is also the issue of child abuse material on the Internet which I will raise again with the Minister for Justice and Equality, having done so last year. The debate is welcome and I hope we can now proceed to take action to address this aspect.