Posts Tagged ‘syp’

Votes at 16 Announcement would be ‘A Seminal Moment for Scottish Democracy’

Wednesday, October 10th, 2012

Media outlets are reporting that as part of the agreement over the independence referendum,  the franchise will be determined by the Scottish Parliament.  The Scottish Government has made it clear it believes the franchise should be extended to 16 and 17-year-olds, and this agreement therefore paves the way for these young people to be able to vote in the referendum. However, the exact details of the agreement are yet to be revealed.

Grant Costello MSYP, Chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament, says:

“Allowing 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in the referendum would be a seminal moment for Scottish democracy.  Young people are the future of Scotland, and it’s entirely right they have their say on Scotland’s constitutional future.  SYP, along with NUS Scotland, have called on both the UK and Scottish Government’s to work together to make votes at 16 happen –we’re delighted that it appears this call has been listened to.

“However, the detail of this announcement will be very important.  There needs to be a clear commitment to ensure the process is in place for all 16-year-olds to be able to register to vote, ensuring every 16 and 17 year-old is given the chance to have their say on Scotland’s future.

“Allowing 16-year-olds to vote in this referendum will pave the way for the franchise to be extended in all future elections – after all, if we trust young people to vote on Scotland’s constitutional future, then we must surely see the case for allowing them to vote in all elections.”

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SYP Elections Commission release report

Tuesday, September 25th, 2012

In 2011 the Scottish Youth Parliament held its most successful set of elections yet.  Almost 85,000 young people voted for their local MSYP.

The Scottish Youth Parliament wanted to improve on that figure, strengthen and enhance our election procedures still further to ensure our elections were robust and could engage even more young people.  To that end we established an Independent Commission to examine how our elections should be conducted in future.  The Commission was headed by Strathclyde University elections expert Professor John Curtice and reported back to the Board of Trustees of the Scottish Youth Parliament in August 2012.

The Scottish Youth Parliament has accepted the recommendations of the Independent Commission, and will look to implement their recommedations in time for next years SYP Elections, where they hope to engage 100,000 young people with the elections.

Commission Report

The Independent Elections Commission recommended radical changes to the way in which elections to the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) are conducted. Amongst its key recommendations are:

  • all young people should have the opportunity to vote for their local Member of the Scottish Youth Parliament (MSYP).
  • the voting age  should be reduced from 14 to 12
  • use of the Single Transferable Vote (STV) proportional electoral system throughout Scotland rather than a mixture of STV and first past the post.
  • SYP constituencies should be based on local authority rather than Scottish Parliament boundaries
  • greater use of internet voting
  • opening up meetings of the Parliament to the wider public

Chaired by Strathclyde University elections expert, Professor John Curtice, the commission was asked by the SYP to conduct a thorough review of how its MSYPs are elected. Although more young people than ever before, 84,490, voted in the Parliament’s most recent election, held in March 2011, this still only represented one in ten of all those eligible to vote. Meanwhile there continue to be substantial differences in the way MSYPs are elected in different parts of Scotland.

The Commission’s proposals are designed to foster higher participation in SYP elections and ensure that throughout Scotland MSYPs are elected via a common, robust, more proportional process.

Professor Curtice said,

‘Since its formation in 1999, the Scottish Youth Parliament has made substantial strides towards becoming a body whose members have a clear electoral mandate and can claim to be representative of Scotland’s young people as a whole.  However, there is a need for further progress, not least in promoting turnout, in ensuring the Parliament’s elections are robust against fraud, and in holding its elections using a common set of rules. Achieving this will require a willingness to think afresh about past practice and to accept change for the benefit of the Parliament and the young people of Scotland as a whole. A vibrant, democratic Youth Parliament that engages the young people of Scotland in the political process is a prize well worth having.’

The SYP Elections Commission Report can be read here.

Scottish Youth Parliament Response

On the 25th of September the SYP Elections Commission Report was published.  The Scottish Youth Parliament released a statement and a response welcoming the report, and agreeing to implement the changes proposed by the commission.

The only area where the changes were not to be initially implemented in full was on the upper age limit for elections.  The SYP Board would like to make greater efforts to engage with older SYP voters in the run-up to the 2013 elections – and then to rexamine whether the franchise needs to be lowered to 21.

Speaking after the report was published, SYP Chair Grant Costello says:

“It’s clear the independent elections commission have produced a very substantial report, which challenges the Scottish Youth Parliament to reform the way we conduct our elections.  It would be easy for SYP to rest on our laurels after getting nearly 85,000 votes in our last elections. Instead we will choose to accept the recommendations of the commission in full.

“The challenge for SYP now is to implement these changes, to create a better elections system, and to aim to get more than 100,000 votes in our next election in 2013.”

The Scottish Youth Parliament’s response to the Elections Commission report can be read here

 

For more information about the SYP Elections Commission go to www.syp.org.uk/electionscommission

 

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Scotland’s young people call for ‘One Fair Wage’ to help fight against poverty

Wednesday, September 12th, 2012

“I pledge to support the One Fair Wage campaign. I believe everyone in Scotland, no matter how old they are, should earn at least a Scottish Living Wage based on how much it costs to live.”

Today, 12th September 2012, the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) launched a new national campaign, ‘One Fair Wage’ calling on politicians, businesses, councils and charities to pledge their support for the Scottish Living Wage.

SYP believe everyone in Scotland deserve to earn at least enough to live on.  We believe it’s obscene for people to be working whilst still trapped in poverty.  We believe a Scottish Living Wage can make a real difference to half a million low-paid Scots.

A Scottish Living Wage won’t solve all the problems causing poverty in Scotland.  But without decent wages which allow low paid workers a decent standard of living we’ll never win the battle.

Over the next year the Scottish Youth Parliament will call on politicians, businesses, councils and charities to pledge their support for a Scottish Living Wage.  It’s time for a better and fairer approach to pay in Scotland.  It’s time for One Fair Wage

The campaign has already received support from The Scottish Government, the Scottish Labour Party, UNISON and Save the Children.  The year-long campaign will focus on a grass-roots approach by Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament (MSYPs) directly engaging with their local councils and businesses to convince them everyone in Scotland deserves a fair living wage.

Grant Costello MSYP, SYP Chair, says:

“Scotland’s young people today launch a campaign to tackle one of the root causes of poverty – low wages.  Far too many workers are being paid wages which are far too low to live on.  It’s unacceptable for poor workers to be reliant on foodbanks and charity.  It’s unacceptable for young workers to be paid as little as £3.68 an hour.  It’s unacceptable for the children of working families to be living in poverty. A Scottish Living Wage can make a huge difference to their lives.

 

“This is not a campaign about political process.  It’s about organisations making a moral and economic choice to pay their workers a Scottish Living Wage.  That’s the message MSYPs will be taking out across Scotland today – that’s what One Fair Wage is all about.”

 

Angela Constance MSP, Scottish Government Minister for Youth Employment says:

“Living wage is an important part of a package of Scottish Government policies to support sustainable employment and tackle poverty.  We have demonstrated our full support for the principles of the living wage in Scotland and are leading by example by implementing the living wage through Scottish public sector pay, with the majority of local authorities also implementing the policy.

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“We support discussion on this important issue and we are using our consultation on the Procurement Reform Bill to seek stakeholders’ views on promoting the living wage.  This consultation closes on 2 November 2012 and we look forward to receiving responses from all sectors, young people and from Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament.”

 

Kez Dugdale MSP, Labour’s Shadow Youth Employment Minister says:

“I congratulate the Scottish Youth Parliament once again for the tremendous leadership they’ve demonstrated in picking a priority campaign which will not only helps young Scots, but also speaks to the values of a nation that they want to build and be proud of.

 

“Two thirds of the children living in poverty come from working households. Work simply has to pay if we want to live in a more equal and fair society, and I look forward to working very closely with SYP to turn that dream into a reality.”

 

Dave Watson, UNISON Scottish Organiser says:

“UNISON welcomes the launch of the Scottish Youth Parliament’s One Fair Wage campaign. A living wage allows workers to provide for themselves and their families. It’s also good for the economy, as low paid workers spend more with local businesses. Everyone gains by moving away from the low wage economy.”

 

Douglas Hamilton, Head of Save the Children in Scotland, says:

“Children should not be bearing the brunt of the recession. Poverty is tearing families apart, with parents buckling under the pressure of mounting bills and children seeing their parents argue more about money. It’s inexcusable that this is happening in Scotland in 2012.

“It’s great to see the support of the Scottish Youth Parliament for fair wages. Given nearly half of children living in poverty in Scotland have at least one parent in work, it is truly appalling those parents can’t earn enough to give themselves and their kids a decent life. The Scottish Government must do more by supporting parents into work, making work pay by promoting the Scottish Living Wage, providing extra childcare and protecting the poorest and most disadvantaged from further cuts.”

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A Letter of Thanks from The Scottish Youth Parliament

Thursday, July 26th, 2012

26th July 2012

Dear Ms. Sturgeon,

A Letter of Thanks from the Scottish Youth Parliament

I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of all MSYPs and the young people of Scotland to say thank you to you and to the Scottish Government as a whole for taking the historic step to legislate for same-sex marriage in Scotland.

Through our campaign, Love Equally, tens of thousands of young people have voiced their support for equal marriage. Young people across the length and breadth of Scotland have told us that they believe in the very simple message of our campaign – two people who love each other should be able to get married.

We thank the Scottish Government for listening to the views of its young people, not only sending an extremely strong and positive message rooted in equality but also showing young people that by engaging in the democratic process they can bring about real change.

The Scottish Youth Parliament understands that this announcement comes at the beginning of an important legislative process and we very much look forward to doing all that we can to assist this process, ensuring that the views of young people continue to be heard. There is still much to do and we urge the UK and Scottish Governments to work together to make any necessary changes to the Equality Act as soon as possible, so that equal marriage can be made a reality in Scotland without delay.

Yours sincerely,

Grant Costello MSYP
Chair, Scottish Youth Parliament

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SYP ‘Very Disappointed at Delay on Equal Marriage’

Tuesday, July 17th, 2012

The Scottish Youth Parliament today, Tuesday 17th July 2012 expressed their disappointment on behalf of Scotland’s young people at the Scottish Government’s decision to further delay their announcement on Equal Marriage.

The Scottish Government consultation on same-sex marriage closed on the 9th of December 2011, the Scottish Government had previously indicated there would be an announcement in March, June and the tenth of July before today’s further delay.

Grant Costello MSYP, Scottish Youth Parliament Chair says:
“It’s very disappointing the Scottish Government has once again delayed the decision to publish the consultation results, and reveal their own plans for Equal Marriage. It’s time to halt the hold-ups, end the delays, and put a stop to the speculation. Scotland’s young people have made their view clear, they deserve an answer from Scotland’s Government.

“Let’s be clear, now is the time for Equal Marriage. A majority of MSPs are in favour. A majority of Scots, and an overwhelming majority of Scotland’s youth, support Equal Marriage. It’s time for the Scottish Government to stop the dither and delay, to listen to the clear message being sent by Scotland’s young people, and to make Equal Marriage a reality for Scotland.”

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SYP ‘Very Disappointed at Delay’

Tuesday, July 17th, 2012

The Scottish Youth Parliament today expressed their disappointment on behalf of Scotland’s young people at the Scottish Government’s decision to further delay their announcement on Equal Marriage.

The Scottish Government Consultation on same-sex marriage closed on the 9th of December 2011, the Scottish Government had previously indicated there would be an announcement in June 2012.

Grant Costello, Scottish Youth Parliament Chair says:

“It’s very disappointing the Scottish Government has once again delayed the decision to publish the consultation results, and reveal their own plans for Equal Marriage. It’s time to halt the hold-ups, end the delays, and put a stop to the speculation. Scotland’s young people have made their view clear, they deserve an answer from Scotland’s Government. “Let’s be clear, now is the time for Equal Marriage. A majority of MSPs are in favour. A majority of Scots, and an overwhelming majority of Scotland’s youth, support Equal Marriage. It’s time for the Scottish Government to stop the dither and delay, to listen to the clear message being sent by Scotland’s young people, and to make Equal Marriage a reality for Scotland.” ENDS Notes to Editors 1. All Media Enquiries to Ewan MacDonald, SYP Parliamentary & Press Officer, on 07753 410676 or ewan.m@syp.org.uk.

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Scottish Youth Parliament Vote for Equal Pay Campaign

Friday, June 29th, 2012

Today, 29th June 2012, the Scottish Youth Parliament has voted to campaign on Equal Pay for the next year.  58% of Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament decided that the priority for SYP would be to campaign for an equal Scottish Living Wage of at least £7 per person for all people.

Currently young people under 21 receive a lower minimum wage – the Scottish Youth Parliament believe that should also be abolished, and all workers, regardless of age, should receive the same basic wage.  However, in these difficult economic times it is clear the current minimum wage is not sufficient, and therefore everyone should be entitled to a Scottish Living Wage of £7.00.

Last June the Scottish Youth Parliament selected Love Equally as the national campaign.  The campaign has been a huge success with highlights including a 1000-person march to the Scottish Parliament, contributing to the thousands of submissions to the Scottish Government consultation, and winning Campaign of the Year at the Scottish Charity Awards.

Today’s vote means Equal Pay is now the national campaign priority for the Scottish Youth Parliament, alongside Love Equally and the campaign for votes at 16.

Hamira Khan, Scottish Youth Parliament Chief Executive, says:

“Scotland’s young people have clearly said they believe it’s time for everyone, regardless of age, to receive a fair Scottish Living Wage. to be changed.  Today’s vote shows young Scots have a vision for a better and fairer Scotland.  An Equal Wage will challenge both inequality and poverty.  It demands young people are fairly rewarded for their work, and demonstrates that their work is just as valuable as someone a few years older.

Scotland’s young people have spoken, and the Scottish Youth Parliament will take up this challenge, and campaign to ensure Scotland’s leaders sit up and listen to our campaign for Equal Pay.”

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Laura Speaks to Channel 4 on Equal Marriage

Friday, February 10th, 2012

By Laura McLachlan, MSYP for LGBT Youth Scotland

I recently had the opportunity to go down to London to film with Channel 4 as part of their 4thought series from a young person’s perspective on Equal Marriage. This was a great day and also special that I got to put my views across on the campaigns that I have been working on for the past two years. The interview was about my views and what I thought about the religious bodies being opposed to same-sex marriage and also about how I felt about marriage as an individual from the LGBT community. As you will see from my interview I have always wanted a white wedding but also I see that if religious bodies are opposed to performing same-sex marriage then they should not be forced to do so. Check out my interview and the other interviews from the series by clicking here .

As a representative for LGBT National Youth Council we have been working on our campaign called M.E 2 (Marriage Equality 2) we have held a symposium in partnership with the Equality Network, held a photo petition on Equal Marriage and also a 10k run to raise awareness of Equal Marriage.

Becoming an MSYP was a great opportunity for me to get the young people’s voice’s heard and the main issue that was arising was Marriage Equality and when the ‘Love Equally’ campaign became SYP’s national campaign. I was so proud to be a part of both organisations fighting for the same cause. Love Equally has gained so much support around Scotland and also hit the headlines in many news rooms across Scotland and the publicity towards the campaign has been great in many areas clearly showing that young people’s voice’s are being listened too.

2011 ended with a massive push to ensure a massive positive response to the Scottish Government’s consultation on same-sex marriage and with over 50,000 responses I think we did a pretty decent job! 2012 kicked off with a busy start and I have been spreading the word a lot about Equal Marriage and also doing a few other bits and pieces for LGBT Youth Scotland.

In October I also spoke at a fringe event at the SNP Conference in Inverness alongside Austin Sheridan MSYP which was sponsored by Alyn Smith MEP. We spoke about the Love Equally campaign and I also presented a speech to represent young people’s views on the subject of marriage. We then had a question-and-answer session where the people got to ask us questions or give us there thoughts on marriage. The event was packed full of MSPs, journalists and members of the public and we had a few negative comments but all in all the event went really well and we got so many supporters from it.

The Love Equally and M.E 2 campaigns have brought Scotland to a place of better understanding of equality and what needs to change and hopefully in the not too distant future it will change. As an MSYP I hope that we all keep up the hard work and maintain the belief that Scotland will change, keep campaigning and educate people on the issues that young people face every day. Hope you are all excited for the Love Equally March on Valentine’s Day and of course the March sitting and hope to see you all there! :)

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Riots – why not Scotland?

Thursday, August 11th, 2011

With the growing success of our Love Equally campaign and lots going on at SYP, it would be easy to let the major public unsettlement in England pass us by without comment.

The riots have really made everyone have a think about society, and it’s not all bad either. Yes, there has been an eruption of anger and crime which has highlighted many issues. However, you cant help being moved by some of the efforts by member of the public to help, by communities getting together to clean up the mess. And it’s reassuring to see the media giving this part of the riots due coverage – rather than only focusing on the bad. The Metro posted this photo of a ‘broom army’.

Many questions are being asked, and at the moment there don’t seem to be many answers. Are these people angry about politics? Or are they solely opportunistic criminals? Have a look at this insightful article on the Guardian website about the psychology of the riot. It is a very complex topic to tackle, so this blog post will focus on a question that has been in our minds – why not Scotland?

There have been two arrests made in Scotland over Facebook pages apparently trying to start a Scottish riot, however so far the peace has been kept. What reasons do you think are behind why Scotland has kept out of this disturbance? Chair of SYP Grant Costello says: “No one really knows why they are actually happening, so it’s hard to say why it hasn’t happened here. But I think that in Scotland we have a different government, a different system of health care and social care, so maybe that’s what the difference is.”

A lot of social media sites have discussions about how the rioters are all young people and many users have criminalised all young people. However, the first person to attend court and plead guilty to looting is a 31 year old teacher.

Grant comments on this view of young people: “I don’t think you can blame all young people, it’s at most a couple of thousand young people out of the millions of young people living in the UK. It is a specific group of people that are intent on causing harm and disruption and a group of people who are left out from society. Most young people are terrified and disgusted at this behaviour, and many are trying to help the clean up.”

Liam Preston, Chair of the British Youth Council looks for the reasons behind why young people are acting in such a way. In his blog he says: “I read a tweet recently asking for ‘justice’ to be done to these young people, however the questions the young people are asking themselves and have been for a number of months now is where is the justice for what happened to them, where is the justice for those who caused the financial mess in the first place? The answer, wrongly, for some of them seems to be rioting and looting the streets of London.”

It is hard to say what will come next, the police and David Cameron promise that justice will be served and those committing the crimes will be punished accordingly. However, the more pressing question is – what will be done to stop the cause of these riots? What action do you think should be taken, and why do you think the riots haven’t spread to Scotland?

Interesting links:

http://yahel.wordpress.com/2011/08/10/riot-wombles-en-marcha-despues-de-que-vandalos-devastan-las-calles-de-londres-twitter-inspira-la-revuelta-de-la-limpieza-en-la-comunidad-todos-armados-de-cepillos-realmente-el-gobierno-no-se-mere/
This is a foreign blog but some of the photos are powerful and shocking

http://lbpreston.wordpress.com/2011/08/09/beginning-middle-end/
Chair of BYC’s blog

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14449675
BBC running coverage

 

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Rural Education

Thursday, July 14th, 2011

Rural Education has been a hot topic for a while, and since plans to close nine rural primary schools in Argyll and Bute were paused earlier this year due to a request from ministers, the government has been taking action.

Education Secretary Mike Russell asked for the freeze while legislation on closures is looked at again.

The new Commission on Rural Education consists of local authority representatives, parents, head teachers and experts. Emily Shaw MSYP was invited to be part of the commission.

 Emily said: “I am absolutely thrilled to be asked to represent the Scottish Youth Parliament on the Commission on Rural Education. It is a huge honour for both myself and the SYP. It’s fantastic to see the views of young people, who are affected by the provision of rural education, being considered and I look forward to the months ahead.”

The Commission, chaired by Sheriff David Sutherland from Tain, is tasked with examining both how the delivery of rural education can maximise the attainment and life chances of young people in rural areas, and the link between rural education and rural communities.

The Commission will also review the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 and its application and make recommendations on the delivery of all aspects of education in rural areas.

The Commission’s remit is:

  • To review the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 and its application
  • To examine how the delivery of rural education can maximise attainment and outcomes to give pupils the best life chances, and to examine, where appropriate, how this can be applied more widely
  • To make recommendations on how to reflect best practice on the delivery of all aspects education in rural areas (pre-school through to Higher and Further Education)
  • To examine the links between rural education and the preservation, support and development of rural communities and to make recommendations on how these links might be strengthened if necessary
  • To examine and make recommendations on funding issues surrounding rural education

What have SYP said about this?

The SYP held an interactive session at our National Sitting in September 2008 to coincide with the Scottish Government’s ‘Safeguarding our rural schools and improving school consultation procedures’ consultation.  Scottish Youth Parliament Consultation Response

Based on the views of our membership, the Scottish Youth Parliament supports the Bill’s proposals pertaining to:

  • The Educational Benefits Statement
  • The School Closures Handling Plan, including the special considerations for schools in remote rural areas
  • The expansion of the list of required consultees, particularly the addition of school pupils to the list

The SYP urges the Parliament to consider:

  • Requiring national guidelines to be produced relating to the suitability of school pupils to be consulted based on age and maturity grounds
  • All residents from the school catchment area to be involved in the consultation, particularly in remote rural areas

The SYP does not support:

  • The creation of a rural schools subsidy fund

So, what happens now? Education Secretary Michael Russell said: “It is very helpful that those who deliver education are fully engaged along with communities and parents to make sure we are getting it absolutely right for school pupils in rural areas.

“The group will report back next spring with a number of recommendations on the way forward for the delivery of education in rural areas.”

COSLA President Councillor Pat Watters said: “The task in front of the Commission is not an easy one, but I feel sure that with the expertise round the table it will produce a thoughtful report. Along with the Cabinet Secretary I look forward to seeing the recommendations next year.”

Interesting links:

http://www.engageforeducation.org/2011/07/commission-on-rural-education-finalised/

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2011/07/07104842

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