MPs challenged by youth debaters

South Auckland debater, Elenoa Cook, challenging MPs to “get out of their comfort zone”.

Three youth debaters from Wellington, Tauranga and South Auckland stole the show in a debate with three newly-elected Members of Parliament to kick off celebrations of Children’s Day 2009, where MPs conceded they were often not at their best when they listened and talked to children and youth.

The winning team of youth debaters challenged MPs on a number of fronts.

Negating the motion that ‘listening and talking to children and youth is what MPs do best’, Luke Craven (year 13, Bethlehem College), leader of the youth debating team, said, “Most youth are not engaged in politics because MPs don’t engage with them. In election campaigns they are only interested in talking with year 13 students because they are the young people likely to be eligible to vote.” He challenged MPs to establish a youth forum in their electorates in the same way as Wellington Central MP, Grant Roberston, is doing.

Frances Ratner (graduated from Queen Margaret College, 2008), the Wellington debater, said, “Promoting a lower voting age is an admission that MPs will only listen to people if they vote.” She recommended that advertising aimed at encouraging people to participate in elections should target 16 and 17-year-olds so they are encouraged to participate when they turn 18.

South Auckland debater, Elenoa Cook (graduated from Otahuhu College, 2008), challenged all MPs to, “Get out of their comfort zone and get down from their positions of power to listen and talk with children and youth.”

In support of the motion, Grant Robertson, MP said, “Not only is listening and talking to children and youth what MPs do best… it is when we are listening and talking to children and youth that we are at our best.” He announced the work he is doing to establish a youth forum in his electorate to inform his work and said the best questions asked of him in the election campaign came from children and youth.

List MP, Catherine Delahunty, said, “MPs are good at talking but they have special difficulties in listening and understanding.” She described parliament as a mix between Harry Potter with all its strange rituals, and Survivor Beehive with all the bees trying to survive and be photographed by the media doing it.

Tauranga MP, Simon Bridges, focussed on what MPs do best: talking. He expressed the view that MPs do need to listen and talk to youth better and fulfil their responsibility to children, including those in poverty.