Yesterday, as the Oireachtas Friends of Science, we had the pleasure of engaging with the winners of the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition, Shane O'Connor and Liam Carew, on their deep research into the relationship between exercise and student resilience in schools. Essentially, they found that a DEIS school they looked at which implemented half an hour of informal activity three days a week, including basketball, badminton and tag football, was brought from the bottom quadrant to the top quadrant in the survey results and research findings. Children felt they were being more included, that it was improving school culture and that they had better relationships with their teachers. I know they are engaging with the Minister, Deputy Foley, but there is definitely a policy which could be implemented on this in all our schools because there is a significant fall-off in exercise, particularly in the junior and senior cycles, among kids not involved in school sports formally.

I met Shane and Liam during the young scientist exhibition, which I visit every year and which I enjoyed immensely. I think we could do with a similar programme in Leinster House and the Oireachtas. It might improve our resilience, mental agility and performance all around.

The sooner, the better.

In a more serious vein, I agree 100% that there is a strong relationship between physical exercise, general fitness and performance generally in life. We are fortunate we have such a high quality of young people who participate in the young scientist exhibition and, more generally, in other fields of research that can inform the way forward. That research is important. I know, in the context of the new primary school curriculum, that this issue will get far higher priority.