John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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94. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the measures that his Department is planning to take to address the extent of social and economic challenges facing young people today; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26086/23]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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While the social and economic challenges facing young people today require cross Government responses and cannot be addressed by one Department alone, an important development will be the publication of the next national policy framework for children and young people, which is expected to be published in the coming months.

This new framework will cover the period 2023-2028. Last year, the Department published a blueprint for this new framework, setting out its purpose to ensure children and young people’s rights are realised in Ireland, and that children and young people are a central consideration in all decisions affecting their lives. The framework is strongly aligned to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and focuses particularly on how Government works, ensuring that children and young people are a central consideration in all decision making affecting their lives.

While many children and young people are doing well, it also recognises that there are acute challenges for specific cohorts who experience disadvantage, such as child poverty, and child and youth mental health and wellbeing. The framework proposes a series of spotlight programmes focusing on these intractable issues, where some children and young people are experiencing severe difficulty and input is required from across Government. On child poverty, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth is working closely with the Department of the Taoiseach.

Overall, the framework will:

• Provide a platform to realise the rights of children and young people in Ireland, so that all partners can work effectively together to ensure children and young people can thrive
• Create an environment where the needs of children and young people are a central part of everyone’s agenda
• Spotlight areas requiring special focus in order to address the challenges being faced by children and young people in Ireland, and generate momentum for change
• Support all children and young people to achieve 5 National Outcomes, with special measures for vulnerable children and young people who need concerted support.