John Whelan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I was merely seeking clarification. I welcome Ms Prendergast, MEP, and am grateful she chose to address the important issue of the Single Market. For too long, and especially in recent years, policy has tended to focus on macroeconomic strategy and banking stability. I am grateful, therefore, that Ms Prendergast has returned the focus to people and raised the requirement to have a more people-centred strategy.

I am grievously concerned about the level of youth unemployment in Europe. We ignore this problem at our peril. There is little point in having well-trained and educated young people who are willing to make a valuable contribution to society, the economy and our culture and community, if they are languishing on the dole queues. The level of youth unemployment in Spain, at 50%, has created a tinderbox that is waiting to explode. Youth unemployment is also a serous problem in this country. The current position whereby emigration serves as a safety valve is unsatisfactory. I have friends in Galicia in northern Spain, where people traditionally had to emigrate to Argentina. I do not know for how much longer Europe, notably Ireland, can continue to rely on emigration as an economic strategy for relieving the pressure on youth unemployment. I urge Ms Prendergast to ensure the European youth guarantee scheme for young people who are unemployed does not become an aspiration or a token gesture. Given the many billions of euro being sanctioned in the current budgetary round under the Irish Presidency, substantial funds must be allocated for the purpose of making a robust challenge to youth unemployment.