Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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653. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her views on the scope of the EU wide youth corps, the European Solidarity Corps; if young persons are being invited to enlist now; if the range of activities are predefined or if young persons are signing up to unspecified tasks and commitments which might include defence; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39652/16]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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The European Solidarity Corps (ESC), which was recently launched by the European Commission, is conceived to offer people under 30 in Europe the chance to support a non-governmental organisation (NGO), local authority or private company active in addressing challenging situations across the European Union – for instance: rebuilding communities following natural disasters; addressing social challenges such as social exclusion, poverty, health and demographic challenges; or working on the reception and integration of refugees. The ESC will build on existing EU professional and volunteering programmes for youth such as the European Voluntary Service, as well as the mobilisation of established networks of employment, education and civil society actors across Europe. It will be developed in close partnership with Member States, local authorities and NGO's.

Candidates wishing to join the ESC, and entities willing to call on members, will be able to do so via one single entry point: the dedicated European Solidarity Corps web-portal. The objective is to get 100,000 young people signed up to the Corps by 2020. The Corps was subject of discussion and input from young people from across Europe at the recent European Youth Conference. The European Commission provided an input on the proposals at the Youth Working Party meeting in October and the ESC was also raised for information by the Commission at the recent EYCS Council. My Department looks forward to hearing further detail on the development of the Corps and the role young people and youth organisations from Ireland might play in it.