Participating in Junior Tynwald proved to be ‘very insightful’ for Camilla Perrie, who represented Arbory, Castletown and Malew. The Castle Rushen High School student was among students from Queen Elizabeth II High School, Ramsey Grammar School and St Ninian’s High School who took the roles of Members of the House of Keys and the Legislative Council for the sitting held on July 11.  

She continued: ‘I was nervous to begin with, but with each supplementary question I gained confidence and got to grips with the “theatre” of the occasion.  As a 17-year-old I thought it was great to have the opportunity to have my voice heard and ask the Minister for Education, Sport and Culture questions. I’d done a fair amount of research and I found the whole experience surprisingly - and reassuringly – enjoyable. And it was less scary than I thought it would be.’

Ramsey Grammar School student Jemima Caine represented Douglas Central. She said: ‘I enjoyed Junior Tynwald more than I expected. The sitting felt “real” and the topics were highly relevant to young people. I would definitely recommend Junior Tynwald. Anyone considering taking part will probably find they’ll surprise themselves and gain confidence as the sitting progresses. I would advise them to do the research, but not to overthink things and enjoy the experience.’

For St Ninian’s High School politics student Jack Shimmin, who represented Onchan, the Junior Tynwald sitting proved ‘interesting’. He added: ‘If I could rewind and do it all again, though, I would have spoken more than I did.’

Freya Weldon from Castle Rushen High School, who represented Ramsey, said: ‘I was quite nervous and I wished I had contributed more, especially as I had prepared eight double-sided pages of research. That said, taking part in Junior Tynwald - the research and public speaking - gives you transferable skills that will come in useful in later life.’

Similarly, Tenzin Bell, from Ramsey Grammar School, who served as a Member of the Legislative Council, had prepared ‘whole paragraphs’ of research and found that as the proceedings unfolded, his confidence grew. ‘I’m glad I did it. It’s good practice for the future,’ he said, adding: ‘I expected formality…but perhaps not quite as much as there was.’

Jonathan Koroma from Queen Elizabeth II High School represented Middle. He said: ‘Junior Tynwald was a great new experience for me. I learned a lot and it made me give more thought to the whole political process.’

Geoff Pryce-Jones, also from Queen Elizabeth II High School, represented Middle. He said: ‘Public speaking isn’t my strong point, but taking part was fun. I moved a motion and found that hearing opposing views was quite motivating and stimulating. Ideally, I would have liked more time to expand my argument, but overall taking part was a good experience for me.’ His motion: ‘That Junior Tynwald is of the opinion that wind turbines are essential to the future of the Isle of Man’s drive to a greener, pollution-free environment’ prompted Castle Rushen High School student Breesha Jenkins, representing Arbory, Castletown and Malew, to propose an amendment. In doing so she said: ‘Like many Members I care deeply about the environment and I’m not against renewable energy, but I think it’s dangerous to pretend that there’s only one solution.’

The amendment: ‘That Junior Tynwald is of the opinion that in assessing whether wind turbines may contribute to the future of the Isle of Man’s drive to a greener environment, an independent and thorough assessment of the implications, impact and benefits for the Island’s electricity infrastructure, and the consumer, should be undertaken and published’ was carried, as was the motion as amended.

The motion: ‘That Junior Tynwald is of the opinion that the Isle of Man Government needs to ensure that the education system deals with modern dangers and challenges faced from social media and its influences on younger generations’ moved by Queen Elizabeth II High School student Zara Jones, serving as a Member of the Legislative Council, was carried.

The sitting concluded, the President of Tynwald the Hon Laurence Skelly MLC, said: ‘I congratulate everyone who took part on what was a fascinating and interesting sitting, with an impressive variety of relevant and topical issues. I also extend my thanks to the teachers for inspiring their students to take part. Everyone – not just those who asked questions or took part in the debates – contributed by voting and therefore were part of the political process.’ He went on to say that the students not only ‘really put Members through their paces’ but also that they would now be potential ‘ambassadors for the oldest continuous parliament in the world.’

Ahead of announcing the winner of the Most Outstanding Participant award Mr President made special mention of Liam Hickey from Castle Rushen High School, Breesha Jenkins from Castle Rushen High School and Jemima Caine from Ramsey Grammar School for their contributions.

The award for Most Outstanding Participant went to Conall Molloy from St Ninian’s High School who said: ‘It was a pretty great experience. The proceedings were very efficiently run and really authentic, especially the passing of notes. I knew what I wanted to say and had done some research, so it was great to have the opportunity to be heard.’

Most Outstanding Participant Conall Molloy with left, the President of Tynwald the Hon Laurence Skelly MLC and the Speaker of the House of Keys the Hon Juan Watterson SHK

-ends-

For further information contact:

Joann Corkish
Deputy Clerk of Tynwald
Legislative Buildings
Douglas
IM1 3PW
Tel: 01624 685500
j.corkish@tynwald.org.im