European Commission commits to a “Youth Check”
📢 We have big news to share! On 10 January 2024, the European Commission announced that they will be implementing a “Youth Check”. This new announcement is part of the legacy of the European Year of Youth 2022.
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What exactly does the “Youth Check” mean?
The "Youth Check" is an initiative aimed at ensuring that EU policies consider the impact on young people during the policy design phase. Its goal is to make sure that the needs and voices of young people are considered across various policy areas.
For years, the European Youth Forum has advocated for such a tool to bring young people into the heart of policy making - so that legislation can finally be designed with young people and future generations in mind. This exciting development has been made possible through support from the Council of the EU, the Committee of the Regions and the European Economic and Social Committee - all of which have also called for the implementation of this tool at EU level.
This is a significant milestone for young people across Europe - who deserve to be taken into account whenever new laws are made 💪
The next steps...
In an encouraging move, the Commission has announced that youth experts will be included in consultative exercises whenever new legislation is produced. This commitment is a positive step towards ensuring that the voices of young people are heard in policy-making. We look forward to working with the European Commission to ensure that representative youth organisations have a strong voice in this process.
...developing the “Youth Test” implementation
While the exact steps for implementing the Youth Test have yet to be concretely defined, it is essential to us to ensure that the five pillars of our EU Youth Test are reflected in the design of the tool. We look forward to collaborating with the European Commission, the Council and other civil society groups to develop this in more detail and ensure it aligns with our vision.
What is really important is that the first step - establishing whether any proposed law is relevant for young people - and this needs to be defined concretely to ensure that policy makers are asking the right questions and adequately considering young people’s realities and concerns.
Transparency of the tool is also key! Young people need to have access to the results of any youth check and understand how any law has been adjusted to mitigate any negative impacts in clear, simple language. Monitoring by the other EU institutions of this Commission process will also be key for transparency and the continuous improvement of the model.
🔥 Our work is not done yet - but this announcement is a huge testament to our efforts to advocate for this tool over the past two and a half years and a big development in ensuring that young people are always a priority in the development of new EU laws.
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