Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. We have not left young people out in our response to Covid. Young people have been central in the response not just of the Government but also of my Department. We are aware that Covid has disrupted all elements of life across the country and has had a particular impact on the well-being of young people. Their educational progress has been interrupted and, as the Senator said, their wider social and community life has been affected. Those who are early in their careers have had their lives disrupted over the past number of months.

In order to have a full understanding of this matter, my Department has commissioned research on the impact of Covid-19 on young people. That research aligns with research done internationally showing that lockdown has had an impact on people's mental health and well-being. That impact has been particularly acute in marginalised groups. It is also worth noting that while there has been an impact on young people, they have rallied in response to Covid. This was recognised by the acting CMO recently, and it is important to put that on the record.

Youth organisations around the country have been leading the community response to Covid and I want to express my thanks to them. We should never underestimate the potential for young people in Ireland to show leadership at a time of crisis.

My Department funds a range of organisations in the youth sector, and we have continued funding them. Even during the lockdown, the vast majority of youth organisations continued to stay open and support the young people who are part of their cohort. That has been particularly important in maintaining the mental well-being of young people. That issue arose in the research we undertook. The young people who engaged with youth services during the lockdown had better outcomes than those who did not. I want to recognise those involved in the youth sector and the national organisations which support them.

We supported the youth sector through a number of small grants that were spread across the country, comprising capital and current grants, to help organisations to meet the costs of Covid. More recently, we also provided a grant scheme to allow them to upgrade their ICT, which is particularly important because many other organisations have had to move online in order to facilitate their ongoing engagement with young people.

In 2020, we spent €61.79 million on current funding and €3 million on capital funding. Following my engagement with the youth sector, in particular recognising the great work it did, we added an additional €5 million in current spending in the budget for next year. That is a significant increase in the budget and was more than the sector had lobbied for. I wanted to recognise the significant work the sector does and the tens of thousands of young people across the country it supports.

Broad supports across the sector are the best way for the State to invest money. The Senator has put forward the idea of the voucher scheme. It is difficult to see how that will bring about broad supports, in particular given that many of the sectors she mentioned, such as gyms, the arts and leisure centres, are closed at level 5. At a time when young people most need supports, I do not feel such a scheme would deliver for them. In contrast, youth services are open at level 5. That is why it is the view of my Department that we should provide supports to wider youth services. We look forward to continuing to do so. I thank the Senator for raising this issue and I am happy to hear her comments on what I have said.