The Minister for Children says she is very disturbed by the findings of a new report which says bullying in Ireland is on the rise. Frances Fitzgerald made the comments at the launch of the UNICEF report card on the well being of children in the 29 OECD countries.

Overall Ireland scored relatively well with 87% of children saying they are satisfied with their lives.

But 28% say they have been bullied. That is up slightly on the last report card in 2001 and 2002. It puts Ireland among only 5 countries which reported an increase in the behaviour.

Minister Fitzgerald says the government is focusing on the issue and schools and other youth organisations need to follow suit.

Peter Power is the Executive Director of UNICEF.

Maria Corbet is Acting Chief Executive of the Children's Rights Alliance, She says it is time more was done to break the cycle of child poverty.

The report also shows a decade of steady progress for the nation's children. 86% of kids here say they are happy with their lives.

Findings

• The first decade of the 2000s saw a halving of low family affluence and an increase in the number of children participating in further education.
• Ireland has a relatively low child poverty rate of 8.5% but those who do fall below the poverty line fall harder than in other countries, giving Ireland one of the largest child poverty gaps.
• Significant decline in children smoking and more modest declines in drinking and teenage pregnancies.
• Ireland has the highest rate of children exercising with almost 1 in 3 children exercising for at least an hour a day. 70% of children eat breakfast every day.
• A rise in the number of children who are overweight puts Ireland ahead of the UK, Germany and France. Over 15% of children in Ireland are overweight by BMI.
• The number of 15-19 year olds not in education, employment or training puts Ireland at bottom of table.
• One of only 5 countries to experience an increase in bullying during the 2000s. One quarter of children would not label classmates as being kind.
• Children in Ireland find it easiest to talk to their mothers (83%) followed by fathers (68%).

Peter Power, Executive Director of UNICEF Ireland said; "UNICEF's Report Card 11 shows huge progress has been made in this country across many areas of children's lives, over the last ten years. We should credit today's young people with making smarter decisions when it comes to their health and ensure that the government continues to make the decisions for children, particularly early in life when it can make the most difference."

Globally, Report Card 11 shows a decade of progress, with the Netherlands retaining its position at number one, followed by four more Nordic countries - Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The report does not show a strong relationship between per capita GDP and overall child well-being.