'Politics needs to involve more young people'

Saffeen Yamulki has hailed the "brilliant" opportunity provided by the summer school

"If we want politics to be representative of the population, we need a large part of the population, the youth, involved in it."

That is the view of Saffeen Yamulki, 20, who is of Kurdish heritage and grew up in Ipswich.

Now studying politics, philosophy and economics at the University of Essex, he is one of 17 young people taking part in a two-week summer school run by Ipswich MP Jack Abbott.

He said: "I think this opportunity is brilliant [in getting] young people involved in the political realm, and not make it seem like it's a scary place with men in suits that control the world."

Alex Harrison and Saffeen Yamulki were interviewed at BBC Radio Suffolk and given an insight into how local media works

Alex Harrison, from Needham Market and another of the summer school cohort, is about to head off to Cambridge to study philosophy, although politics is already a part of life.

"I work with the I Will Movement, and Ipswich is one of their named towns of social action," said the 19-year-old.

"One of the things we talk about is the power of young people and the power of youth.

"So whilst so many of our ambassadors come into the area from a place of something quite negative, a lot of their social action is based on something they've been through and they're turning that into something positive and making change.

"I think while we can see social media as a place of doom and gloom, and doom scrolling, we should focus on the amazing things that young people like us are doing to create change and make the world a better place."

The summer school team were taken by Jack Abbott (centre) to Westminster

This is the summer school's first year. It is aimed at 18 to 24-year-olds interested in careers in politics, public service and campaigning.

Abbott said he was given his chance in politics through a summer school, and he wants to give the same chance to the next generation.

A recent report by the Electoral Commission found that while most young people felt politics did not affect their daily lives, about two-thirds thought it was important to learn more about it, and nearly three-quarters believed politics should be taught more in schools and colleges.

Joe Page and Hannah Laughlin say the summer school is a positive way to learn more about how politics works

Another summer school participant is 19 year-old Hannah Laughlin, from Ipswich.

She is about to start her second year at Oxford, where she is studying politics, philosophy and economics.

"There's definitely more work we need to be doing to get young people involved," she said.

"A lot of the time young people really do care, and they really do have emotional reactions to what's going on – not just in the government but around them and seeing what's happening around the country and elsewhere.

"But they just don't know how to express how much they care."