NI Youth Assembly to be introduced at Stormont

The youth assembly will meet at Stormont

The Northern Ireland Assembly Commission has launched a plan to introduce a youth assembly.

The youth assembly will debate "the issues that matter to them" in the NI Assembly chamber at Stormont.

It follows engagement with a range of stakeholders, as well as considering youth forums in other jurisdictions.

Assembly speaker Alex Maskey urged young people "to stand up for what you want and help change the things you don't".

It is proposed that the youth assembly will broadly mirror the structures of the NI Assembly:

• It will have 90 members, 54 of whom will be drawn from the NI Assembly constituencies and 36 from specific sections of the community.

• The core age range of the members will be 13 to 17, but there will be an upper age limit of 21

• It is expected to have two plenary sittings a year and have up to four committees, which will meet more regularly, at Parliament Buildings and other locations.

Alex Maskey said he looks forward to chairing the debates

Assembly speaker and Sinn Féin MLA Alex Maskey who will chair the youth assembly's debates, said it was an opportunity for young people to become "active citizens".

"We must do more to encourage the next generation to get involved in politics and democracy here; the youth assembly will allow us to do that," he said.

Mr Maskey said that young people will help shape how the youth assembly will work, what its priorities will be and its focus.

The NI Commissioner for Children and Young People also encouraged young people to get involved.

Koulla Yiasouma said the proposal is "a step forward for the rights of children and young people in Northern Ireland".

"The voice and experiences of children and young people are essential for good decision making for any legislative body," she said.

"Young people under the age of 18 do not have the vote and therefore it is important their assembly finds alternative ways to hear their views on the issues that are important to them."

People can register their interest on the NI Assembly website.