In advance of today's meeting, apologies were received from Senator Curley. Before we proceed, I will go through some housekeeping matters. In accordance with Standing Orders I wish to make the following declaration. I do solemnly declare that I will duly and faithfully and to the best of my knowledge and ability, execute the office of Cathaoirleach of the Joint Committee on Education and Youth without fear or favour, apply these rules as laid down by the House in an impartial and fair manner, maintain order and uphold the rights and privileges of members in accordance with the Constitution and Standing Orders.
I remind members of the constitutional requirement that in order to participate in public meetings, they must be physically present within the confines of the Leinster House complex. Members of the committee attending remotely must do so from within the precincts of Leinster House. This is due to the constitutional requirement that in order to participate in public meetings, members must be physically present within the confines of the place where the Parliament has chosen to sit. In this regard, I ask any member partaking in the meeting via Teams that prior to making their contribution to the meeting, they confirm they are on the grounds of the Leinster House campus.
Members are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice to the effect that they should not criticise or make charges against any person or entity by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable, or otherwise engage in speech that may be regarded as damaging to the good name of a person or entity. Therefore, if their statements are potentially defamatory in relation to an identifiable person or entity, I will direct them to discontinue their remarks. It is imperative that they comply with such direction.
It is a great honour to have been appointed as Cathaoirleach of this committee. I thank An Taoiseach for nominating me to this position. I look forward to working with each of the committee members in a genuine spirit of partnership and co-operation. I am confident we will bring our combined skills and enthusiasm to bear and make this a highly productive committee that discharges its functions in an efficient and enlightened way. I welcome all members of the committee, particularly those who are newly elected Members of Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann.
I take this opportunity to pay tribute to the members of the previous committee on education, namely, the Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research Innovation and Science. I hope this committee will be equally effective. I anticipate that we will refer to and build on the valuable work carried out by the previous committee, which identified key issues relating to education that need to be addressed.
As we all know too well, however, there are seismic changes in the world, including the outcome of the US election and the rapid acceleration of the development of AI technology. In this changed reality, I strongly believe education will face significant challenges in continuing to provide world-class opportunities to all of our students. They deserve no less as they face a very different future, both in terms of how they learn and how they ultimately progress to meaningful job opportunities or to retrain at a later stage in life.
It is also imperative that we continue to provide the crucial education supports required by those who have special needs or as a result of their circumstances, experience or educational disadvantage. This country has come a very long way in cherishing all of its citizens in equal measure, but we must continue to build on the strong foundations that have been put in place.
Education also has an extremely important role to play in supporting positive mental health. It has never been more important that schools play a significant role in educating young people on positive mental health and, equally, on preventative measures to assist those who are at serious risk due to bad mental health.
The inclusion of youth in our remit is also very important. The previous committee had a policy of inviting young people before it in order that their voices could be heard. These voices fed into recommendations that ultimately changed Government policy. I hope this committee can continue that legacy because young people are our future.
I hope our collective efforts will feed into and support the efforts of the Minister for Education and Youth and the Minister of State with responsibility for special education and inclusion.
I am confident that our combined efforts will further Ireland's reputation as a country that truly values and supports education as well as the development of our youth to their full potential. I will endeavour to be as fair and impartial as possible to all members of the committee. I strongly believe a united approach, whereby all members contribute and feel their efforts are worthwhile, will yield the very best results from the committee. Do any members wish to comment?
