The tradition of Youth Parliaments within Australia is strong. With the inception of the first National Youth Parliament in the Easter of 1941 the commitment of Government and private organisations alike to providing a strong voice for youth has been firm. However, in recent years, due primarily to problems of logistics, there has been a decrease in youth representation around the country – with government and industry funding in decline for state programs and commitments made previously regarding the re-establishment of the national scheme falling through.
The Youth Parliament program of the ACT is one of the few to buck this trend. Boasting fifty participants in its first year (with capacity for more than one hundred in those to come), it goes from strength to strength - providing young people with the foremost opportunity to advance their opinions and take place in real political debate. Presently the youth of Australia are sidelined; our opinions disregarded and work undervalued. We have, for years, been relegated to the position of second class citizens. Those older than us have taught that because we lack age we necessarily lack value – our opinions are unimportant or uninformed, and our interests are naïve.
However, as we are constantly told, we are the future - and while that phrase often serves to send us off with a patronising pat on the head, we must seize it and make it our own. It is true, we are the future, but we can't let that stop us acting in the present. If we do not act now, there may be no future left.
Making a better future for ourselves is what Youth Parliament is all about. Young people of all ages, classes, races and creeds coming together to debate the issues that face our nation. Held annually in the Old Parliament House, House of Representatives, the ACT Youth Parliament is the foremost forum for those aged 15 - 25 interested in engaging in the political debate.