Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Members for their contributions. I enjoy being in this House because it provides a space for an in-depth examination and critique of many subjects and this is a very important area. I value everybody's contribution to the debate. Senator Mullen said nothing had been decided and that is the case. There will be a consultation process until 25 October and this evening's contributions will form part of that. When the then Minister, Deputy Richard Bruton, initiated this he tasked the NCCA with completing the report, which it will do so that, at the end of the year when I hope it will be finalised, we will be able to see where we are.

I take on board other people's opinions and that includes parents' fears. Parents hear different things but, ultimately, it boils down to three very important words, namely, value, respect and understanding. Irish society should value each individual sexual orientation, respect decisions around contraception and try to understand issues such as consent. These words were part of our core curriculum when we went through school and all these words were in use at my Loreto school in the 1980s, as were dignity and compassion. Society is rapidly changing but we can still hold on to and harness what is dear to us in our value-based system.

Resources have to follow and Senator Byrne referred to training in this context. Whatever decision is made, resources will have to follow. I came across a piece of research recently which showed that just one in three of the young people who were interviewed felt their parents listened to them. One out of ten felt politicians listened to them, which reflects a stark reality and seems to be the inverse of the situation in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.There is a very close relationship between parents and young people, one which has moved into a space of mutual respect. Even at this late stage, I encourage parents to use the consultation mechanism to make their viewpoint heard on this very important decision before 25 October. We will be in a position to have a report from the NCCA at the end of the year.

I have taken note of a number of contributions and viewpoints. The message reflected in all of them is that this issue is complex and requires much more than one silo effort in the area of sexuality education. It also relates to mental health and the serious anxieties young people experience in the world we live in. We have to grapple with that and take this much further. Consent starts with self-respect, respecting oneself, and then showing respect for other individuals. We have to do much more work around building capacity and empowering the cumas of the individual and student. Teachers have worked through that over the past two decades and are in a completely different place now. We have discussed curriculum change but a lot of good work is being done in secondary and primary schools around empowerment and capacity building. We are on that journey together.

The contributions made tonight will be included in the consultation and I am sure the NCCA will listen closely to the views expressed in this discussion. We cherish inclusivity and believe we live in a pluralist society. If there are people who feel their voices are not being heard in this debate, I encourage them to continue to make their voices heard. We will see what the NCCA comes up with at the end of this process.