Tackling youth unemployment must be our top priority

Fine Gael Meath East Bye-Election candidate, Helen McEntee, has today (Monday) said that tackling youth unemployment must be the Government’s top priority. The 26 year old added that while the unemployment rate in Meath is lower than the national average, a lot of work needs to be done to help stem emigration and get young people into full time work.

“Meath is lucky to have a high percentage of teenagers and young people, meaning we have to ensure the right measures are being taken to provide employment. The Government has put a range of schemes and supports in place to help young people enter the workforce, but a lot of work remains to be done to get to the bottom of our youth unemployment crisis.

“I have met many parents over the last week or so whose children have gone to London and further afield to find work, and the problem of youth emigration is certainly something that is coming up regularly on the doorsteps. If elected, I will be the youngest female TD in the Dáil, and I will be pushing the Government to ensure tackling youth unemployment is a top priority.

“Over the last two years, the Government has had to completely rebuild our economy from the old failed model based on banking and construction, to the new model based on enterprise and innovation. We need to ensure that providing opportunities for our young people is central to the solution.

“The Government recently secured an agreement on an EU-wide Youth Guarantee, and I think it is important that this is implemented in Ireland as soon as possible. A Youth Guarantee would put pressure on the Government to ensure people under the age of 25 are either in employment, education or a traineeship.

“Youth Guarantees are in place in a number of other countries, such as the UK and New Zealand. I believe the adoption of one here would ensure a focus on youth-orientated policies. As part of the Action Plan for Jobs 2013, the Government has set up a €1 million Youth Entrepreneurship Fund, which is to be welcomed. I know lots of young people with great business ideas, who just need the right support to get up and going.

“In the last three years of the previous Fianna Fáil Government, 250,000 jobs were lost in the private sector. Now, about 1,000 jobs are being created a month. We need to build on this progress, and ensure as many of these jobs as possible are going to our new graduates so we can keep our talented young people at home and at work.”