Vincent P Martin (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

At a time when it appears increasing numbers of younger people are disengaged, apathetic or, worse, alienated from society, sometimes distracted by addictive social media feeds and misled down dark roads of substance abuse and social alienation, it behoves the political leadership of this country to sit up and endeavour to take appropriate action.What action is appropriate? The response must be multidisciplinary and co-ordinated. Apart from the ongoing need to invest in education at all levels, there is a strong argument for developing the teaching of social sciences to younger students in secondary schools as well as older primary school children.

I also believe the voting age in political elections should be lowered to 16 years. I come from a party that has many young environmental activists. Maybe that helps to keep me young and stay connected with their needs and what they want. At present, the only significant social science course offered to students is on politics and society. This truly worthwhile initiative was introduced into secondary schools in 2016 but one of the problems with this course is that it is not taught to students until they reach senior cycle or fifth year. In my opinion, students as young as ten years of age should be introduced to introductory issues relating to politics, legal systems and society. We need to develop their ability to assess important events that are happening around them, which they are observing and partaking in the active observation of. We need to encourage them to engage. As they grow into their teenage years, younger people should be told about what the Government does, how it is elected, and how it interacts with Parliament, the courts system and the media. Young people should be given a taster course in how our legal system works. They should be informed about the Constitution and its role in setting and delimiting rights and obligations and giving people entitlements. They can learn about the nature of crime, the difference between a crime and a civil wrong, and the role played by solicitors, barristers and the courts.

Law is the cement of society. It runs through the whole of society. It is what underpins our freedom. Law is what gives society the ability to protect and implement the rights of vulnerable people. It establishes a scaffolding for our society and protects citizens from the dangerous extremism that is so evident in so many countries, including some countries with which Irish people are quite well acquainted. Law is a device that ordinary people can use to promote and defend things they hold dear. That same proposition cannot be said for many other arts subjects.

I speak to the subject from a position of some experience. In a past life I worked as a secondary school teacher. In that role I had the privilege of introducing hundreds of young people to the wonderful subjects of English literature and history. Later, as a practising barrister I organised a public access to law programme for second level students from all over Ireland. The programme culminated in an annual mock trial competition which went on to a world cup event and reached tens upon tens of thousands of students. By the time I retired, it had reached 160,000 transition year students. They were active members of that course but could not vote.

If we educate young people on the workings of society, it follows that they will be better able to comprehend it. If they have a deeper understanding of it, they are more likely to be meaningfully engaged. It is also my opinion that the broadening of this part of the curriculum should be complemented by the lowering to 16 years of age voting eligibility in this country. Senator McDowell mentioned some anomalies, as he would see them, arbitrary anomalies in that people at that age cannot gamble, smoke, vape or buy lottery tickets. None of the above are perhaps good for their health.