Burnham-On-Sea’s Member of the Youth Parliament is leading Somerset’s participation in the UK’s largest-ever youth consultation exercise.
Thrinayani Ramakrishnan, an elected Member of the UK Youth Parliament (MYP) from Burnham, is taking part in the annual ‘Make Your Mark’ ballot, the largest consultation of young people in the country.
The vote started on 12th August and runs until 10th October, and sees young people across the country being asked what issues matter the most to them in order to determine what is debated by the UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) in the House of Commons on 14th November.
Voting is taking place both online and through ballot papers issues in schools and youth centres.
Thrinayani, right, who is running the ‘Make Your Mark’ campaign in Somerset, told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “This is an amazing opportunity for young people to be empowered.”
“Not only does it help to form the UK Youth Parliament’s campaign for the coming year, it also tells decision-makers that young people are prepared to stand up for what they believe in. This makes change possible.”
Ten topics are available to choose from on the initial ballot papers, with the five most popular topics among young people going on to be discussed by MYPs in their November debate, chaired by the Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow MP and to be broadcast live on BBC Parliament.
Last year, the ballot surveyed the opinions of over 478,000 young people, making it the largest youth consultation of its kind in the UK. This year, MYPs have set themselves a target of getting 1,000,000 young people to take part. Young people aged 11-18 can vote in the ballot online here until 10th October.
