Northern Tablelands MP and Youth Parliament alumnus Adam Marshall congratulates Inverell High School Year 11 student Max McFarlane on his selection for the 2021 NSW Youth Parliament.
Tuesday, 8 June 2021
INVERELL High School Year 11 student Max McFarlane will next month experience life as a MP, making his way to Sydney’s Macquarie Street Parliament House for the 2021 NSW Youth Parliament.
The Youth Parliament program is for students in Years 10-12 and compliments the successful and long-standing Junior Parliament program for younger students.
Youth Parliament alumnus and Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall said the experience was an important platform for young people to speak on issues that were important to them and for people in the region.
“To be selected to participate in this program is no small thing with six past pieces Youth Parliament legislation actually passed into NSW law,” Mr Marshall said.
“While at Youth Parliament Max and his colleagues will learn a great deal about our democracy, how Parliament operates, legislation becomes law and, most importantly, making new friends and learning new skills for life.
“Youth Parliament is a rare opportunity for young people to hone their public speaking skills and sharpen their debating techniques on one the country’s most brutal political stages – the floor of the NSW Legislative Assembly or ‘bear pit’.
“Max is an incredible asset to his school and will be a wonderful representative for the Inverell community and our region when he heads to Sydney next month.”
Max said Youth Parliament would provide him an exceptional opportunity to advocate for action to combat the issues young people face, specifically issues concerning rural and regional NSW.
“I look forward to working alongside other passionate young people from across the state in the processes of legislative debate in NSW Parliament House in early July,” he said.
“Ahead of Youth Parliament sitting, as an appointee on the Inclusion and Diversity Committee, we have completed our first draft of a Bill outlining a more inclusive state uniform policy that specifically addresses the limiting factors of the current state policy.
“The Bill aims to ensure a universally inclusive uniform standard which schools must follow.
“I hope to build meaningful connections with a variety of young people from across the state. I expect this program also enables me to develop my public speaking capabilities in a formal setting.”