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City calls for radical changes as Westminster accused of betraying young
A YORKSHIRE council has accused the Government of “destroying education and career opportunities for young people” and will today call on its chief executive to lobby for radical changes at Westminster.
Leeds City Council will consider a White Paper Motion asking Tom Riordan to write to the Minister for Children and Families highlighting policies the authority believes are damaging the region’s economy by unfairly hitting the young – such as the ending of the Education Maintenance Allowance and the raising of tuition fees.
The council is campaigning to become the UK’s first official “Child Friendly City” and deputy leader Judith Blake said if young people are not a key consideration in policy the cost to society will be “immense” in the long run.
Coun Blake believes that the council can exert pressure on the Government, and denied the move was a political stunt.
“Working towards being a child friendly city is not a fluffy option,” she said. “It is vitally important to put the needs and rights of young people at the heart of everything we do.
“If we ignore a generation then the long term costs to the city will be immense.
“Some of the policies brought forward by the Coalition in response to the economic downturn are going to have a serious negative impact on young people here and risk creating a divided city.
“I believe we can force change – there have been key areas of policy where the government has had a rethink as a result of local government pressure and it is important we articulate our concerns, we are the ones on the ground, seeing the impact their decisions are having on communities.”
The motion, to be considered at a meeting of the full council, calls on the authority’s partner organisations to “fully support and commit to achieving our ambition to become the UK’s first Child Friendly City”, asks Government to rethink its response to the economic downturn in order to mitigate the damaging effects that policies are having on young people and requests that Mr Riordan writes to the Minister for Children and Families – Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Teather – to highlight their concerns.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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