Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and his officials for the work they have done in this area. I was part of the delegation that went to Oberstown. By visiting an institution, one can see the challenges everyone faces. The best thing we can all learn in this process is that prevention is better than trying to provide a cure after the event. While this legislation goes a long way towards dealing with the issue, we need to ensure we have adequate procedures in place at a very early stage to deal with children who are going down the wrong road and getting involved in criminal activity. I thank the Minister and all the staff involved in drafting the legislation.