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Youth parliament > Press gallery > Youth Parliament 2007 day 1 by Greg Stack
Youth Parliament 2007 day 1 by Greg Stack
Fourteen Waikato students joined 107 students, from high schools and university’s around New Zealand to converge on the beehive for the fifth Youth Parliament on Sunday.
 By Greg Stack
Over the course of the four day event the students are given the
opportunity to take part in one of numerous youth-orientated select
committees, which range from the validity of NCEA to youth gangs to
whether BZP-based party pills should be banned.
Hamilton Girls High School student, Chelsie Foley believes that it’s in
the select committees and in the concluding mock legislative debate,
where the most good will be achieved.
“Every time you hear about a young person it’s because of drinking or
boy racers. It will be good to show that we aren’t all bad.
“It also gives us a chance to understand parliament. People don’t really realise that they can be involved in government.”
Each student applied to and was chosen by a local body MP to represent
their electorate and has participated in a select committee, a general
debate and opportunity to pressure their MP counterparts at a question
time. All of this leads up to the anticipated mock legislative debate
on the ‘Household Response to Climate Change Bill 2007’.
Every effort is in place to make Youth Parliament, and the debates, as
“real” as possible with some MPs stopping by and government personnel
and procedures are maintained and strictly adhered to.
“I’m looking forward to talking about climate change” says Cambridge’s
Jenifer Cant, “I think that (the MPs) will take what we are doing
seriously because it gives a different perspective, a youthful
perspective.”
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