I do not propose to add much to the contribution I made on the last occasion. However, there are a number of specific points which bear on recent events and the way we treat our youth. One issue is what is called the President's awards scheme which was announced recently. In the budget the Minister for Finance announced that £150,000 was being granted to the International Youth Year Committee. Since that announcement £50,000 has been pilfered from it and handed over to some group or other — the name is not yet available — to establish a President's award scheme. The only name mentioned so far in relation to it, apart from the President's, is that of Dr. A. J. F. O'Reilly who I think has something to do with the Irish Independent. I understand that an advertisement has been placed in newspapers looking for a director for the scheme. If we are serious in dealing with youth problems and establishing confidence with the youth we cannot, on the one hand, announce £150,000 to be spent in International Youth Year by youth organisations and, on the other hand, take one-third of it back and allocate it for a different purpose. Will the Minister explain what is going on in regard to that scheme? I am sure the Minister is aware that the National Youth Council are very upset about the way they were treated in regard to the scheme. The Minister should ensure that the £50,000 is restored to the International Youth Year Committee.
A section of the report deals with juvenile offenders and makes clear that there is a close relationship between disadvantaged youths and the fact that many of them appear in our courts. There were recent moves to deal in a panic fashion with those found guilty of offences committed primarily by young people. There has been a lot of hysteria, built up to a large extent by newspaper headlines, concerning so-called joyriding and the opening of Spike Island as a prison. Juvenile prisoners have been transferred to adult prisons and education facilities in Cork prison and Arbour Hill have been closed down. There is little point in spending our time discussing the fine report of the National Youth Policy Committee and referring to how well we are going to treat our youth while at the same time the Minister for Justice makes decisions which are completely contrary to the most enlightened information, knowledge and experience as to how youth offenders should be dealt with.
The Minister has to answer for what is going on in the Government. Panic measures are being taken to deal with young people who come before our courts. They are being treated in a way which can only be described as vengeful, seeking revenge against those who are guilty of various offences, without much effort being made to rehabilitate the offenders. One step that has been taken is the transfer of juveniles to adult prisons, and that is a wrong move.
