Dear Deputies Cowen, Flanagan, Fleming, Nolan, and Stanley
We are constituents from Laois and Offaly, who are calling on you to support young people in Budget 2024 by investing €9.4 million in young people and youth work.
It is a hard time for young people. COVID-19 impacted their mental health and social connections, and now, the cost-of-living crisis means many are struggling financially.
Youth work organisations say that deprivation among young people they work with is on the rise, and the need for youth services is growing dramatically as young people and their communities feel the effects of the cost-of-living crisis.
Youth workers are often a lifeline for young people, particularly for those who have the least. The wide range of activities provided by youth organisations support young people in their personal and social development, positive mental health, physical wellbeing, job skills and much more.
The rising cost of living is also placing a huge strain on youth work organisations themselves. A recent survey by the National Youth Council of Ireland revealed that nearly 3 in 5 organisations struggle to deliver vital youth work services because of inflation.
The Government must provide the necessary resources for these organisations to meet the growing needs of young people in Laois and Offaly, and to provide an Ireland where young people can live, grow, and flourish.
That is why we are supporting the National Youth Council of Ireland in calling on the Government to invest an additional €9.4m in youth work services in Budget 2024, to provide more supports and activities for young people and meet the needs of our growing youth population. The NYCI and its members across the country believe this increase is needed to help ensure the sustainability of the sector, and deal with current challenges facing many services.
We request that you act on this call and use whatever avenues available to you to ensure that we see a Budget 2024 that invests in our young people.
Your constituents,
| Linda Uí Aimheirgin |
| Aoibheann Ní Fhaoláin |
| Caroline O’Donoghue |
| Tanya Fitzgerald |
| Michael Stapleton |
| Fiona O’Donnell |
| Hugh Mc Ginley |
| Maura Mansfield |
| Hugh O’Rourke |
| Rabiat Muhammed |
| Sophie McCarter |
| Emmanuelle Galisson |
| Valerie Driscoll |
| Teresa Coughlan |
| Siobhan Connolly |
| Patricia Chambers |
| Conall Broughan |
| Pauline Vanwijk |
| Laura Starnes |
| Adetayo Johnson |
| Marie Holland |
| Fiona Delaney |
| Margaret Delaney |
| Elizabeth Wilson |
| Cora Shelly |
| Joan O’Hara |
| Sheena O’Hara |
| Ismail Nosiru |
| Kesenthra Murphy |
| Maureen Murphy |
| Olga Murphy |
| Aoife Molloy |
| Aileen Mcleod |
| Anna Mc Wey |
| Alessia Kearns |
| Grace Hughes |
| Molly Hickey |
| Josie Guinan |
| Helen Conran |
| Siobhan Connor |
| Joe Begley |
| Michelle Tuohy |
| Elizabeth Quinn |
| Rona Pears |
| Lister Ncube |
| Ann Marie Maher |
| Mel Lloyd |
| Catherine Kenny |
| Claire Kelly |
| Josie Jones |
| Val Jones |
| Louise Dunne |
| Niall Dunne |
| Majella Doyle |
| Amalia Doody |
| Eilish Burke |
| Breda Breen |
| Jackie Allen |
| Kate Wood |
| Denis Ryan |
| Eileen Ryan |
| Joan Ryan |
| Caroline Page |
| Eileen Nash |
| Valerie Case |
| Emer Calt |
| Siobhan Bowe |
| Archie DW |
| Breda Flynn Murphy |
| Pauline O’ Donovan |
| Dermot McLoughlin |
| Miya Matsushita |
| John Whittaker |
| Matthew Salisbury |
| Susan McDonnell |
| Carmel McCaffrey |
| Linda Mc Donagh |
| Finuala Heffernan |
| Caroline Brickland |
| Barbara Boumenjel |
| Nathalie Beaudelot |
| Moira Sheppard |
| Sinead Fennessy |
| Maud Cunniffe |
| Annette Coughlan |
| Ita Wrafter |
| Jo Rodgers |
| Tina Parsons |
| Jennifer O Neill |
| Steve Grasham |
| Mary Fìachra |
| Nesrin Elazaly |
| Clara Brennan |
| Michael Bracken |
| Margaret Willis |
| Teresa Norman |
| Mary Mythen |
| Gavin Murphy |
| Annette Molloy |
| Carmel Meacle |
| Anne Hoctor |
| Jo Gannon |
| Noreen Galvin |
| Joe Cooper |
| Kathleen O Connor |
| Ailbhe Cahill |
| Damian White |
| Marie White |
| Bernadette Spain |
| Caitriona Smith |
| Elisangela Silva |
| Melanie Rabie |
| Lillie Quinn |
| Helen Nunan |
| Mary Jane Mahon |
| Martina Lynam |
| Sean Hynes |
| Joseph Dwyer |
| Mary Dwyer |
| Mary Bryan |
| Rachel Ward |
| Bernie Daly |