Youth Parliament

Towards the end of June, I was lucky enough to be part of the City of Greater Bendigo team sent to the 36th annual Youth Parliament of Victoria, run by the YMCA in Lake Dewar and parliament house on Spring St, Melbourne. 

This was the culmination of six months of work, including the drafting and finalisation of a bill devised and written entirely by us, a group of six young people aged between 16 and 24. Our bill, Improving Medical Pathways Into Regional And Rural Victoria, 2022, focussed on getting more doctors, nurses and specialists to non-metropolitan areas like Bendigo in the long and short term.

Our team of six presented our bill to 120 other young people, forming 20 different teams from Mildura to Warrnambool and everywhere in between. 

The sheer range of diverse backgrounds, beliefs and identities continually staggered me throughout the week. So many people put so much into their respective bills - our own team captain, Youth Councillor Mia Thomas, spoke passionately yet eloquently about her experience in our health system as a young person struggling with severe allergies. Our bill passed the Legislative Assembly with a unanimous vote in favour, with our government and the opposition supporting our bill. Outside of our team, there were bills regarding wide and varied topics, like reinstating the Vinelander train to Mildura or mandating individual student counselling sessions in every high school across Victoria, and many more besides. 

In time, all of the 2022 bills will be made available to the public but they have - whether they passed either house or not - already been passed onto the Hon. Linda Dessau AC, the Governor of Victoria, a sign that the voices of young Victorians are being heard by those in power. More than a dozen bills that were initially raised at the past 35 Youth Parliaments have been passed into actual legislation, including mandating the use of bike helmets, a first in Australia at the time. 

Bendigo’s efforts this year were remarkable, in that we not only had our bill passed and had success in refuting the bill we were challenged to stand against but had the honour of our 2022 Victorian Youth premier being from our team. My fellow City of Greater Bendigo Deputy Youth Mayor, Ryan Peterson, was peer-elected to the office of Youth Premier, therefore sitting where the Hon. Daniel Andrews does normally. The rest of our team, then, sat on the front bench (my spot being where the Treasurer, Tim Pallas, sits). This was exciting, as it allowed us to be even more immersed in the parliamentary experience. 

However, Bendigo’s success did not end there. At the end of the week at parliament, the Youth Parliament held a bicameral closing ceremony, much like the one the real parliament does at the end of a term. We gathered in the Legislative Assembly, with special guests including the new Asst. Minister for Health, Nina Taylor MLC, and the Shadow Minister for Youth, Dr Matthew Bach. Together, they spoke about the bipartisan commitment to youth leaders that Victoria enjoys, and their enjoyment of the debates they witnessed over the week. 

Following that, the officials of the Houses - the Serjeant-at-Arms of the Legislative Assembly and Usher of the Black Rod of the Legislative Council - took to the dispatch box to announce the Best Speakers of both houses. In my House, the winners were decided by the MPs and volunteers who moderated the debates as the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. After three days and 10 debates - five supporting, five refuting - there was a series of runner-ups, but only one winner. 

Sitting in such a historic and impressive room with 150 people eagerly waiting for the winner was a tense moment. My friend from the Buloke-Loddon team, Jake, who I was sitting next to, predicted quite simply; ‘Listen, mate, you’re definitely at least a runner-up - and if you’re not a runner-up, you’re the winner.’ When the Clerk read my name out as the winner, Jake could hardly keep himself upright he was laughing so hard.

To be the best speaker in such an excellent field of young leaders, so passionate in their beliefs and dedication to the cause, was a win that I was ecstatic to take - although I reckon a few runner-ups were robbed of it. No matter - awards and politics aside, the camp was an exceptional experience and I highly recommend it to everyone who has even the slightest interest in politics or community. 

I have no doubt that some of the people that I met at that camp will go on to do great things - future Prime Ministers, Premiers, Ministers, captains of industry and community leaders from A to Z. And, at the Youth Parliament, they were not just the leaders of tomorrow; they became the leaders of today.

Remus Brasier (11 Millward)