Youth Parliament 2022
Taking Over Parliament House
The verdict is in. Youth Take Over's interns at YMCA's Youth Parliament called for soft skills to be taught in schools—and the result was a resounding 'YES!'
Youth Parliament is a program run by YMCA Youth Services that gives young people a hands on experience and the opportunity to have their voices in heard. In a team of six, young people from the age of 16-25 can present their views on a wide range of issues that impact the lives of young people. Their task is to draft a Bill, addressing a state-based issue o their choice and something they think should be added to real, legit, law binding Victorian Legislation.
Their bills are introduced and presented in Youth Parliament, and debated and voted upon over a week as the young people sit in the chambers of Parliament House. At the end of this week, all the Bills that are passed are handed to the Minister for Youth. This program made for the perfect launch point for a Take Over, and with the support of our sponser, we were able to send a group of 6 into the city to speak up and have their voices heard.
A huge congratulations to Abbey, Brea, Andrea, Jessica, Kimberly and Tom for successfully advocating for all young people.
Thank you to our funder Agnico Eagle for making all of this possible and investing in future leaders. Their Community Partnership Program is opening doors—and in this case, it was the ones at Parliament House.
A win for young people
"This bill is a policy that is designed by young people, for young people, and with young people," Tom told the Legislative Council. He said young people need confidence and the ability to communicate with employers, which is at the heart of the team's Mandatory Youth Work Readiness Program Bill.
Total majority
The Council passed the bill unopposed. As Brea said in her speech, "the reality is we need to bridge the gap between youth and industry, and this bill is the perfect recipe to do that." Their bill comes out of research that found that young people are struggling to connect with employers.
No debating this success
A big part of the week is the debates that take place between different teams in parliament. Our interns had an impressive victory against Ivanhoe Girls Grammar School and have been applauded for their epic communication skills.
Our Youth Parliament Interns
in the News
Using regional youth voices in Parliament
Shepperton News:
Six regional youth made their voices heard in Victorian Parliament last week in a push for the same opportunities as their metropolitan counterparts.
Five members of the Northern Victoria Youth Parliament Team fronted the Legislative Council on Tuesday, June 28, to present their Mandatory Youth Work Readiness Bill.
After months in the making, the bill passed with “overwhelming support”.
Shepparton’s Tom Saxton said that while it had been a journey, it was one that was not quite over.
“We know it’s going to be seen by the government now but it kind of just moves onto the next steps of the progress ― of trying to get it strongly considered, trying to get it talked about in Parliament and those kinds of things,” he said.
“Hopefully it can be really considered and in some ways put into action to help Victoria, and try to help Shepparton’s young people as well.’’
This Take Over will go down in history!
Congrats to our wonderful interns.
Thank you to our sponsor for supporting this project
