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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 9 Dec 1975

Vol. 286 No. 7

Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - School Leavers.

4.

asked the Minister for Labour if his Department have surveyed the position of 1975. school leavers; and if any figures are available as to the number who have succeeded in obtaining employment.

A clear picture of the employment position of school leavers in any year does not emerge until later in the year. I would expect that the information which the Deputy requests should be available from the proposed survey early in 1976.

Surely the Minister is aware of the serious situation which is affecting school leavers. Is he aware that applications for jobs are somewhere in the ratio of 57 to one. Can he indicate what steps he intends to take to try to provide jobs for the 56 young people whose applications are unsuccessful?

I am aware, as the Deputy is aware, that there is a serious unemployment situation. Young people suffer from that as much as any other category. Last week I gave an indication to the Deputy of some of the pilot project surveys we have started. Based on the success of these surveys, we will consider their extension throughout the rest of the country in an effort to assist young people who cannot find employment at present. It would be naïve to think young people can be protected against unemployment as long as it continues at its present high level. Unemployment will be licked here only when the economies of the countries with which we trade show some improvement.

Has the Minister discussed with the Government the possibility of providing money for public works projects to alleviate adult unemployment and unemployment among school leavers? Is it proposed to make money available? Has the Minister made application for money available from the EEC fund to assist school leavers?

As the Deputy knows, at EEC level our intervention has consisted of a certain extension of aid to school leavers throughout the Community countries. That was one of the initiatives we took at the end of the Irish presidency. At home, our main thrust has been to turn back unemployment as it affected all categories of Irish workers, and especially those who have been thrown out of work as a result of the unemployment crisis. With regard to young people, we will be considering very carefully the result of the surveys I have announced. We have pilot projects already started in various parts of the country and, depending on their success, we will consider their extension to see whether, despite the bad economic situation, more young people can gain employment. Deputy Gibbons was a member of a Government which presided over the highest unemployment rate in Europe——

——when the economy was regarded as relatively prosperous.

Not nonsense, fact.

It is nonsense.

The Minister did not answer the question I asked. Did he ask the Government for any moneys to be made available for works? What I want to know is whether the Minister is taking positive action rather than just using words.

Discussions within this Government are confidential. The Deputy can take it that I have indicated the projects that have our support and will have our support depending on the results of the survey.

Has the Minister actual statistics of the number of school leavers who have not got positions?

The last survey indicated something like 20 per cent have not got employment. We will know more about this on the next survey.

Question No. 5.

Would the Minister consider setting up a section in his own Department which would have accurate information about the numbers employed and the numbers who went on to third level education generally from post primary schools? Will he do this because it is only now the large numbers participating in education at ever-increasing age limits are beginning to have an impact and, therefore, we want a new structure?

The Manpower Service have last year's survey and will be examining next year's survey, which will be taken early in the new year, and on the results of the next survey it would be our intention to take whatever action would be deemed to be appropriate.

Question No. 5, please.

May I take it that the Manpower Service will be dealing with the total number of school leavers?

It is a partial matter.

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