It is a sad fact that too many young people feel disengaged from politics today. This sense of disengagement needs to be addressed if we are to sustain a healthy and accountable democracy in Wales. Detailed polling by the firm Opinium suggests that turnout among 18 to 24-year-olds in the last referendum was 64 per cent, which was a bit of encouraging news. The figure is much higher than originally thought. I believe that engaging people early in the democratic process is vital if we are to ensure they continue to participate in our future.

Creating a youth parliament in Wales will not do this alone, but I do think that giving young people an opportunity to make their views heard, particularly on issues that affect them, will greatly assist in increasing the engagement that we all wish to see. Youth parliaments exist in many other countries, such as Belgium, Finland and Australia. Deputy Presiding Officer, Scotland has its own youth parliament, while Northern Ireland has made considerable strides within its own youth democracy organisations. Wales remains in a minority of UK nations and territories that do not have a youth parliament. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child recently said that one of the issues facing Wales was the disappointment surrounding young people not having a national, independent, democratically elected youth parliament. We all believe that a youth parliament in Wales is vital in widening understanding of the role of the National Assembly. In a recent poll, only 61 per cent of respondents knew that the Welsh Government was responsible for education in Wales. Remarkably, only 48 per cent of respondents knew they were responsible for the NHS. If voters do not understand the devolved power we have in Wales, then there’ll be little motivation to go out and vote.

Deputy Presiding Officer, I made a few notes while I was listening to my colleague, Darren Millar. The political system actually put together and the public opinion get together and the young people’s voice must be heard within that arena. Understanding of race relations, understanding of LGBT, and understanding of other different relations at a young age is vital to have a peaceful society for the future. All other areas, such as tuition fees, are directly affected by the living wage and child poverty. These are the areas where we must know the views of the child, and what they are going through within their families, especially in Wales, where poverty is still very, very serious among our young children. Fifteen per cent of our population—15 per cent, Deputy Presiding Officer—are between the age of 11 and 18. Actually, that comes to around about 0.5 million children. So, we’ve got to be serious about it and we’ve got to do not what’s best for us, but what’s best for them also, and best for our future.

A reduction in the age for voting is also a view that I heard from the Minister earlier. Children have different views about that. Why don’t we listen to the children as to what their opinion is on that side also? We also know that the mental health issues in our society can be very nicely looked after by young children. The young children are a force; the grandparents and parents virtually—they get cured by the youngsters of their own families more than medicines and other things. Zero tolerance in school—I mean bullying—is another one where we must consider the children’s views. We must move the recommendations on and—[Inaudible.]—this Chamber, Deputy Presiding Officer. But the fact is we must—we must, we must—listen to young children’s opinions and their views and their concerns before we make any rules and bye-laws here.

There is a long list, Deputy Presiding Officer—time is short—but we must do whatever we can to make this country greener, and we can only have a greener future if our children are there, involved in our planning for the future. If one child plants one tree or two trees or three trees in his or her lifetime, there’d be 1.5 million trees in the next seven to 10 years. There’s a long list, Minister, and we want to make sure that our children’s parliament is as vital as this parliament in Wales. Deputy Presiding Officer, education remains the key to democratic engagement. I believe that a youth parliament, in conjunction with other measures, would drive up interest in the democratic process and deliver long-term benefits. It will bring a colourful, beautiful painting to our black and white political picture in this country. Thank you.