Council bows to youth pressure

Council leader Jim McMahon: youth argument worthy of discussion

OLDHAM Council is to investigate the possibility of allowing the borough’s youth council to become part of the local government process.

A motion put to the council at its meeting on Wednesday is to be discussed by a local joint leadership board, and members of the youth council will be invited to hold formal discussions.

The motion calls on the council to involve young people in the political process because it will feel the greatest impact from decisions made by the Government. They asked local political parties to write youth manifestos to state their positions.

Youth council member Mariam Waseem (18) said: “Only 12 per cent of under 25-year-olds plan to vote in next year’s general election. The youngest MP is 29 and the average age of MPs is 50, so how can I be sure my MP understands the issues that affect me?”

Council leader Jim McMahon said: “Oldham is the only local authority in the country that allows its youth council to do this (present arguments to the counil), and this should not be underestimated.

“This motion should be properly looked into and debated so that we all end up with a solution that we are happy with.”