The newest Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament to represent Edinburgh were today unveiled at the City Chambers. A total of 26 young people from all areas of the city stood for election with more than 10,000 votes cast – double from the last elections held in 2009.
The 12 new MSYPs will take up their role officially at June’s AGM. The new representatives were voted in on a range of manifesto promises including; scrapping plans for student fees, lowering the voting age to 16 and tackling youth unemployment.
City Education Leader Cllr Marilyne MacLaren said:-“There was huge excitement and enthusiasm surrounding these elections and that has been mirrored with a fantastic turn out of young voters.
“I want to congratulate everyone who took part and I look forward to hearing from the new MSYPs and the work they will carry out on behalf of the young people of Edinburgh and Scotland.”
The Edinburgh election was organised by the City of Edinburgh Council’s Children and Families and Communications Service.
The full list of winners areCentral- Chris Glendinning (George Heriot’s School) & Charlie Brinkhurst Cuff (Broughton HS)
Pentlands – Rhiannon Lee (Currie Community HS) & Sara Ansari (Firrhill HS)
Southern – Eilidh Still (James Gillespie’s HS) & Malcolm Boyd (James Gillespie’s HS)
Western – John Bendo (St Augustine’s HS) & Jahura Hussain (Royal High School)
A Facebook account has been set up to promote the elections and will now be used as a forum for youth discussion. Anyone can join the conversation and the new list of MSYPs will also be posted there.
The Scottish Youth Parliament is a non-party political organisation made up of 150 young people aged 14-25 and represents every constituency in Scotland. It campaigns to highlight the voice of Scotland’s young people on a national and international stage and sits three times each year at a range of different locations, including in the main chamber at Holyrood’s Scottish Parliament.
