AFTER A day of discussions on how to make young voices heard, teenage delegates attending Dáil na nÓg yesterday did not miss out on their chance to roar and shout aplenty at the politicians and civil servants brave enough to appear before them.
In a lively questions-and-answers session, about 200 delegates between the ages of 12 and 17 asked all the tough questions of a panel of “senior policy-makers” that included high-ranking civil servants, local councillors and Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Frances Fitzgerald.
In the midst of banging feet, loud rounds of applause and occasional scatterings of boos, some of the topics raised were third-level fees, special needs assistants in schools, politicians’ pensions and the perceived unimportance attributed to young people’s opinions.
Yesterday was the 10th anniversary of Dáil na nÓg, the national youth parliament that meets once a year. It aims to give young people a chance to influence policy and is comprised of delegates elected from local Comhairle na nÓg throughout the State.
“Days like this are so important because young people want their voices heard,” said Lisa Marie Sheehy (17) from Glenroe, Limerick. “It is actually a life-changing experience for some people because they just might find out what they are about.”
The hot topic yesterday was how to create a stronger voice for young people and to bring a national focus on to work they are doing at local level.
Four discussion group sessions, spread throughout the morning, inspired countless arguments and opinions which left plenty of voices waiting to be heard at the afternoon’s questions-and-answers panel.
“Some of the politicians there were just dumbfounded, they couldn’t answer the question and it was just waffle,” said Darina Birsanu (17) from Longford town.