Young People and Local Decision Making
Tuesday 28 August 07
Young people – dynamic, determined, refreshing, original and sometimes a bit unpredictable. We can inject new ideas, thoughts and opinions into old and tired schemes. We are the future of everything - but do we have a voice that can be heard directly at the highest level of politics? Or are we merely represented by adults who claim to know what we want? In order to explore this, first we must look at how decisions can be made on a local level – a complicated, multi-faceted system.
The way in which decision making works in Northern Ireland is like a hierarchy. At the bottom are the borough, town and city councils which are mainly responsible for local facilities e.g. sports, leisure, and retail. Higher than this is the Northern Ireland Assembly (although the councils are completely separate from the Assembly). The NI Assembly, when running, looks after domestic affairs in Northern Ireland (such as Health and Education), however if, as at the moment, it is suspended, then any domestic affairs are dealt with at Westminster and Northern Ireland is in Direct Rule. The parliament at Westminster would be the next level up on the hierarchy and is who the devolved regional assemblies of Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland are answerable to and overseen by. At the top of this decision making hierarchy is the European Parliament which makes up the parliamentary body of the European Union and the legislative branch (although it can only amend and disapprove policies, not initiate them). Appointment to the European Parliament is not on the basis of population and therefore gives its smaller member states a more equal voice amongst the larger member states such as Germany, France and the UK. Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are voted in every five years and include Jim Allister QC, Bairbre de Brún and James Nicholson for Northern Ireland.
In addition to these, there are also councils which work between Northern Ireland and other parts of the UK and Ireland. The North/South Ministerial Council is a cross border council set up in 1999 to develop consultation, cooperation and action with in Ireland and is made up of both ministers from the NI Assembly and Irish Government. Furthermore, the British-Irish council was set up in 1998 with the Good Friday agreement to promote ‘positive, practical relationships’ between the British and Irish Governments, the devolved assemblies of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.
But where do we, the Young People of Northern Ireland, fit into all this?
In 2003, Nigel Williams was appointed as Commissioner for Children to look after children’s rights in Northern Ireland. It was part of a 10 year government scheme to ensure that the rights and needs of children and young people are at the centre of government policy and decision making. In addition to this, on 10 August 2005, Lord Jeff Rooker was appointed as the very first Minister for Children and Young People in Northern Ireland. Amongst his aims is a forum for children and young people, and of course the involvement of children and young people in the decisions which affect them. Lord Rooker intends to make sure that the needs and rights of children and young people through out Northern Ireland are considered and highlighted in the future.
Currently in the UK, the legal age to vote is 18 years and recently many questions have been asked as to whether it should be lowered to 16 years. This of course has been met with both support and criticism. On one hand many young people here who are unable to vote feel they are old enough and responsible enough to carry out this task and take part in the decision making of the country. However, on the other hand, there are those who claim that at 16, young people don’t have true political views and do not know what they want or understand the process and consequences of voting.
For those who wish to be apart of the decision making processes of Northern Ireland there are youth-led initiatives which have been set up to give young people a voice. For example Shadow Youth Councils (see previous issue) and the Northern Ireland Youth Forum. The NIYF was set up in 1979 and “lobbies, advocates, promotes and fights for the rights of young people in Northern Ireland”. Its committee is made up of 12 young people who feel strongly about the rights and needs of young people and wants their voices to be heard.
And so, despite the extremely complicated structure of Northern Ireland’s decision making process young people are becoming more and more involved with the politics of their country – even where their involvement is wavering, there are young people working hard to ensure the contact and support of local politicians and public servants.
Thanks to the following organisations and websites for the above information:
www.northsouthministerialcouncil.org – North South Ministerial Council
www.direct.gov.uk – public services directory
www.britishirishcouncil.org – the British Irish Council
www.nio.gov.uk – Northern Ireland Office
www.niccy.org – Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People
www.niyf.org – Northern Ireland Youth Forum
Also worth a look:
www.youth.ie – for young people in Ireland
