Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I cannot disagree with anything the Minister of State said in her speech. I want to highlight that there is a level of bureaucracy that comes from the ETB and someone has to be picked to deal with this.

I want a national framework for clarity. Each ETB deals with things differently. I know it is a localised base, but really the people on the ground know. There is not a uniformity across the country. There has to be a flexibility within that but there is no uniformity across the country. Each youth work organisation deals with different things in different ways and it can be very difficult.

The fact is that those UBUs are only in small areas; they are not everywhere. Prevention is far cheaper and better than cure. We should start looking at the youth work officers, many of whom have not had an increment in about ten years – I must throw that in. Youth work is a very valuable career and important profession in the framework of society.

I ask for a dedicated youth work officer who will go around supporting youth clubs and young people.