Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I second the motion. Táim thar a bheith buíoch de Cheannaire an Tí, an Seanadóir Cummins, as ucht an t-am seo a thabhairt dúinn leis an gceist seo a phlé mar is ceist iontach tábhachtach ar fad í. Bhí mé thiar i gCarna an la faoi dheireadh agus casadh iníon mo dheirféar orm. Tá sí 22 bliain d'aois agus dúirt sí liom nach bhfuil cara amháin fágtha aici i gCarna seachas cailín amháin eile atá ina máthair shingil. Tá gach duine eile imithe. My 22 year old niece who lives in Carna in rural Connemara recently informed me that almost all of her friends have left the area. She only has one friend left who is her own age. The only reason that girl has remained is because she is a single mother and cannot afford to leave.

It is important to note what the motion states. From the point of view of their amendment, those on the Government side appear to have stuck their heads in the sand to some degree. The motion states:

That Seanad Éireann notes that:- 30.4% of under 25s were officially unemployed in 2012;
- this is the fifth highest rate of youth unemployment in the eurozone, after Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy;
- our youth unemployment rate has more than trebled since 2007;
- 53,800 under 25 were officially unemployed at the end of March 2013;
- the cost of youth unemployment to the Exchequer is estimated to be €3.16 billion annually;
- the number of young people in employment has fallen by 24,100 in the last 12 months;
- since Fine Gael and Labour took office the number of under 25s in the labour force has fallen by 34,500;
- 31,181 under 25 emigrated in the year up to April 2012;
- 18% of young people are not in education or employment or training, the fourth highest rate in the EU;
- of the 333 actions listed in the 2013 Action Plan on Jobs only four relate to young people;
- the European Council Recommendation of February 2013 announcing a youth employment initiative with a fund of €6 billion, while welcome, is not sufficiently resourced;
- the International Labour Organization has called for an investment of €21 billion EU wide to tackle youth unemployment;
- the proposed youth guarantee pilot project in Ballymun, while welcome, may not be up and running until 2014;

However, the Government amendment advocates the deletion of all words after "Seanad Éireann" and suggests a replacement text. What is the problem with the facts outlined in the original motion, which are true? If we are going to tackle the issue of youth unemployment, we must be realistic and acknowledge the facts. There is nothing in the motion which castigates the Government or its policies. Neither does lay blame at the door of this Administration as opposed to a previous one. That is the status quo and surely we must acknowledge this fact. I call on all Government Senators to support the motion in the sense that it at least acknowledges the location of the starting point. Let us admit that a difficulty exists and let us consider how we can move on from it.

The motion tabled by Senator Reilly clearly and concisely highlights the lack of action on the part of the Government in respect of this matter. It is in stark contrast to the Government's amendment, which is actually quite laughable. Everyone is familiar with the adage "Lies, damn lies and statistics". The Government's amendment is an exercise in finding any kind of statistic in order to justify its position, while denying the truth of what is actually happening.

Those on the Government side are sticking their heads in the sand if they believe they are offering anything like a reasonable defence. I ask them, therefore, to withdraw their amendment. The amendment notes that the number of young people unemployed is down to 53,800, a reduction of 26,800. However, as the motion indicates, the number of young people in employment has fallen by 24,100 in the past 12 months.

We note that the number of under 25s in employment has fallen by 34,500 since Fine Gael and the Labour Party took office. What does that tell us? It tells us that the numbers in employment are not due to any increase in population but are due to the inordinate levels of emigration which are blighting Ireland. We all know the situation, and the Government is kidding itself if it believes that it is dealing with the matter. We all know families where a mother has had to see two, three or more children travel to the far side of the world to seek work because there is nothing here. We see families separated, and towns and villages emptied of young people. That is particularly evident in communities along the west coast; I see it at home in Connemara.

We had a course at Easter of student teachers who went to Carraroe to learn Irish, and I was asked to talk to them. Towards the end of the presentation I asked the approximately 200 teachers how many of them expected to have a job as a teacher in Ireland within the next three or four years. Approximately 10% of them expected to still be here at that time. That shows a huge lack of hope among the youth in that particular sector in terms of their future prospects of finding full-time employment as teachers here.

Shops and pubs that were once thriving are now struggling. GAA clubs are struggling to put 15 players on the pitch yet we see clubs in London and Warrington thriving, and clubs in Sydney and Melbourne have greater numbers than ever. If the Minister is wondering where the 26,800 who were on the dole are gone, they are not gone into jobs. They are most likely gone into employment but they are in Perth, Dubai or Toronto. Some 31,181 emigrated in the year up to April 2012, and many more have emigrated since.

The issue of emigration is closely related to the issue of unemployment, particularly youth unemployment, as it is the category between the ages of 22 and 35 who are most likely to be mobile. The key solution to the emigration crisis is to solve the unemployment crisis but the Government has effectively done nothing. It points to the pilot project in Ballymun but as the motion notes, it will be 2014 before we even see that, and that is a mere pilot. We can take it that it will be at least two years before the vast bulk of the population sees any benefit from that.

The motion notes that the youth guarantee needs more funding - currently, it has only €6 billion - and that the employment issue is the real issue, particularly in rural areas. The role of LDCs is unsure, and they are key to creating employment in rural areas, as is the capital budget in Údarás na Gaeltachta. This issue must be targeted in conjunction with the employment targets that have to be set down, particularly in rural areas.