Youth Parliament opens submissions

  • Nikki Kaye
Youth Affairs

Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye has today released the select committee topics for Youth Parliament on 16 and 17 July 2013.

Youth Parliament is seeking public submissions on the topics - ranging from New Zealand’s international obligations to environmental issues - to be discussed by the 121 Youth MPs during the Select Committees of Inquiry at Youth Parliament.

“Youth Parliamentarians are provided with an experience that is close to the real life of an MP,” Ms Kaye says. “This includes doing their time on select committees and listening to a range of views that may differ from their own.

“Each Youth MP will be assigned a select committee topic and they can proactively seek public opinion on their subject from their community.”

Youth Parliament 2013 will also involve 20 Youth Press Gallery members who will support the Youth MPs to actively seek public opinion, as well as report on the discussions during Youth Parliament.

Members of the public are invited to make a written submission on any of the 10 select committee inquiry topics for a two week period from 5 to19 June 2013.

“The topics have been selected by a cross-party steering group,” Ms Kaye says. “We deliberately chose topics that would be challenging and provide for robust debate.

“I hope that many young New Zealanders take the opportunity to have their say on these issues.”

All submissions will be collated and summarised by the Ministry of Youth Development. These submissions will then be distributed to Youth MPs prior to Youth Parliament 2013 to inform the debate.

The subjects and text of the select committee background papers can be found on the Youth Parliament website www.youthparliament.govt.nz

Notes: the select committee topics are:

Education and Science: Compulsory vs. elective subjects in secondary schools – should subjects like science be compulsory?

Commerce: Purchasing online: supporting modern consumerism.

Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade: Where should New Zealand’s international obligations lie – Pacific or wider afield?

Justice: White collar vs. blue collar crimes: do current sentences reflect the economic and social impacts of these crimes?

Maori Affairs: As more iwi move towards a post-settlement environment, how do rangatahi see the role of iwi in supporting the development of the next generation?

Primary Production: Can New Zealand afford to be free range?

Social Services: How can public expectations for social services be balanced against likely rising costs for these services?

Health: Are young people taking enough personal responsibility for reducing and preventing substance abuse or should this be government’s role?

Local Government and Environment: Should government restrict or permit private businesses profiting from conservation activities?

Transport and Industrial Relations: What are the barriers to young people entering employment across New Zealand workplaces and how can these be addressed?