Politicians to be grilled by North Wales students

More than a hundred year 12 Welsh Baccalaureate students from Ysgol Gyfun Bryn Elian in North Wales will today (15 October) take part in a Question Time event with a panel of politicians as part of Local Democracy Week.

The event, organised by the National Assembly for Wales’s Education Outreach Service, will highlight the importance of democratic participation and give pupils the opportunity to question decision-makers on issues affecting their lives.

This year’s panellists will be Brian Cossey - Liberal Democrat Councillor for Colwyn, Carrie Harper - Plaid Cymru Councillor in Wrexham, Crispin Jones - prospective Assembly candidate for Labour in Clwyd West and Darren Millar - AM for Clwyd West.

Questions from pupils have been tabled in advance, on subjects of their choice, and this year’s themes include the environment and education.

Two pupils will chair the event and ensure that the panel members adhere to the one-minute timescale for answering questions, which they will not have seen beforehand.

Presiding Officer, Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas AM, said: “This is a wonderful opportunity for young people to learn about the democratic process in Wales and challenge politicians on what they can do to improve our communities and make changes to young people’s lives.”

“I have no doubt that the standard of questions will be extremely high on the topical issues of the day”.