17 Ean 2013, 17:33
The Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs this afternoon heard an insightful contribution from web entrepreneur Paddy Cosgrave on how youth unemployment might be curbed.
17 January 2013
Mr Cosgrave is founder and organiser of the Dublin Web Summit, described as Europe’s largest tech conference. He also organises F.ounders, an annual private gathering for 150 of the world's leading tech company founders.
Chairman of the Committee Dominic Hannigan TD says: “We thank Mr Cosgrave for a positive, practical and constructive approach to tackling Europe’s youth unemployment crisis. As a young entrepreneur who employs 50 people, Mr Cosgrave argued that there was role for vigorous and focussed state funding to tackle the crisis. Our Committee takes on board Mr Cosgrave’s view of the strong evidence that exists in developed economies such as the US, Japan, South Korea and Sweden of public money nurturing burgeoning industries in past decades.
“Mr Cosgrave presented an upbeat assessment of Ireland’s education system, citing Eurostat statistics which demonstrate that Ireland holds joint first position in the European Union for third level education attainment, and ahead of all but one European Union Member State in the proportion of maths, science and engineering graduates. Consequently, Ireland is the country with the highest percentage of its workforce engaged in the high-tech sector in Europe.
“We also raised with Mr Cosgrave the proposal for Youth Guarantee across Europe. Such a Guarantee would be introduced in all Member States which would ensure that all young people up to age 25 receive a quality offer of a job, continued education, an apprenticeship or a traineeship within four months of leaving formal education or becoming unemployed. Mr Cosgrave said that, while such a Guarantee had to be warmly welcomed in principle, securing the funding for such an initiative in difficult economic times would be challenging. Our Committee is hosting meetings as part of the parliamentary dimension to Ireland’s EU Presidency and will seek to advance the initiative in discussion with our fellow parliamentarians in other Member States in the coming months.”
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ENDS
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Committee Membership
Deputies
Dominic Hannigan, TD (Chairman)
Paschal Donohoe, TD (Vice-Chairman)
Seán Crowe, TD
Timmy Dooley, TD
Bernard J Durkan, TD
John Halligan, TD
Colm Keaveney, TD
Seán Kyne, TD
Joe O’Reilly, TD
Senators
Colm Burke,
Fidelma Healy Eames,
James Heffernan,
Terry Leyden,
Kathryn Reilly