YMCA NSW Youth Parliament

The YMCA New South Wales Youth Parliament is an apolitical YMCA Youth Parliament program coordinated by the YMCA NSW, and acts as an advocacy platform for young people in New South Wales aged 15 to 18. Participants spend time in Committees developing mock Bills, which they debate during a week-long camp in the NSW Parliament. Bills are given Royal Assent by the Youth Governor and handed to the NSW Government and Opposition for consideration.

Notable alumni of the program include Avani Dias, Adam Marshall and Chris Rath.

Overview
The YMCA NSW Youth Parliament is a YMCA—sponsored youth model parliament program. The program was first launched in 2002, attracting 32 participants representing regional teams from across New South Wales. The program has continued since and is in its 21st year. There is a YMCA Youth Parliament program in every Australian State and Territory.

Young people aged 15 to 18 may apply for the program or seek selection from their local MP or MLC. Successful applicants are then allocated committees according to their preferences and begin to create a Bill which focuses on a current issue in New South Wales.

Participants meet during a weekend—long training camp where they learn about the legislative process. Participants then spend time in the Legislative Assembly debating, amending and voting on Bills and general motions, including Question Time and a Matter of Public Importance. Approximately six pieces of Y NSW Youth Parliament legislation have been passed into NSW law, including the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme.

Youth Leadership
During the Training Camp, Youth MP's may nominate themselves for leadership positions including Premier, Deputy Premier, Opposition Leader, Leader of the House/Manager of Opposition Business, and Party Whips. A vote of the participant body is then held to determine the leadership team for the respective calendar year. With the introduction of a bicameral parliament, further leadership positions have been made available to serve the Legislative Council, such as Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council.

Youth Parliamentarians also have the opportunity to become either Ministers in the Government or Shadow Ministers of the Opposition. Those elevated to these positions are elected by their peers in portfolios to take on the role of lead sponsor or refuter of their respective portfolio. This is replicated in the Legislative Council with chairpersons of committees and ministers representing legislative assembly portfolios. There are additional leadership roles, such as government whip, opposition whip (in both houses) and regional ministers (in the legislative assembly).

Participants also have the chance to attend the Governors Reception at Government House.

Youth Governor
The position of Youth Governor, voted in and selected by the volunteer taskforce and participants, is charged with overseeing and representing the program as well as signing off on bills that are passed.



Taskforce
The program is facilitated and supported by a group of volunteers aged between 18 and 25 years and typically are also past participants, these taskforce volunteers or 'taskies' are the lifeblood of NSW Youth Parliament. The YMCA NSW Youth Parliament is the only Youth Parliament across Australia that does not receive funding from the State Government. YMCA funding and a dedicated volunteer taskforce continue to run Youth Parliament. The YMCA NSW Youth Parliament also offers the Press Gallery program. This is an internship program for eligible students facilitating experience in journalism, advocacy, public relations and political reporting as part of the Youth & Government suite of programs.

Programs
The Youth Parliament has held conferences since 2002, creating and debating bills on a wide range of topics. The YMCA NSW Youth Parliament was held at Sydney Olympic Park Lodge (SOPL) at the Newington Armory in Sydney's Western Suburbs.

The Youth Parliament passed the Same-Sex Marriage Matter of Public Importance (MPI) in 2012 with 70 ayes to 11 noes, with the largest majority of all Youth Parliaments in Australia debating this issue. The young parliamentary members represented the spectrum of opinions. One member stated his belief in the importance of the MPI as a member of the gay community, while another voted against the MPI due to religious beliefs.

In 2013, the Parliamentary and Legal Reform Committee Debated the Marriage Equality Bill 2013. This passed unanimously with 72 ayes to 0 noes. Following the passing of the Bill, the chamber began to sing '' 'Advance Australia Fair'. '' This is a first for the YMCA NSW Youth Parliament. The Bill also passed in the Legislative Council with 40 ayes to 4 noes.

In 2019, the Aboriginal Affairs Committee debated a bill to establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Committee within all NSW schools. This is to help improve the cultural standpoints and enable self-determination of Aboriginal people and their communities. This passed unanimously with 67 ayes to 0 noes. The bill was even more significant with the programs first ever Aboriginal premier ushering it through the chamber.

During the 2021/22 program, members from the Aboriginal Affairs, Women's Affairs, and Justice committees united in delivering their Private Members' Statements on the issue of Australia's national public holiday (26 January). The Youth MPs were commended for their bipartisanship and collaboration in uniting on such an important and pressing issue. Notably, two Youth MP's, Samuel Barry Member for The Upper Hunter and Zaccary Lancaster Member for Holsworthy used their Private Members Statements to come out in support of the current date of Australia Day. The Member for The Upper Hunter stating that "We mustn’t be afraid to face our history head on, being accepting of our past yet moving forward as one people".

In 2021, the Aboriginal Affairs Committee advocated for a Bill to implement a framework for cultural education within the NSW juvenile justice system. The Aboriginal Education in Juvenile Detention Bill 2021 outlined the committee's vision for fair and equitable treatment of incarcerated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people. The Bill was passed unanimously and unamended. In March 2022, the Bill was officially presented to The Hon. Ben Franklin, MLC.