Mobilisation for the Youth intergroup

At a meeting today (9th October 2014) , strong support was given by the nearly 40 attendees from the European Parliament to the continuation of the Youth Intergroup for the coming five years. The Youth Forum was also in attendance, urging MEPs to show their commitment to young people through supporting the renewal of the Intergroup.

For five years, the Youth Intergroup of the European Parliament has provided a unique space for MEPs from different political groups and committees to exchange views and work together on comprehensive and successful policies affecting young people in conjunction with youth civil society and young people themselves. More than a space for MEPs to discuss policy development, this Intergroup is a real bridge between elected representatives and youth civil society.
In their contributions to today’s debate, the MEPs reinforced the vital role of the intergroup in supporting and empowering young people facing various economic and social challenges across Europe. Today 7.5 million young people below 25 across the EU are not employed, not in education and not in training.

The continued existence of this intergroup is therefore crucial as it consistently brings youth to the attention of European institutions and facilitates improvements for Europe’s young people, such as, in the past, the Youth Guarantee & Erasmus+.

The MEPs present also recommitted themselves to, in the coming weeks, gathering as much support as possible from their MEP colleagues and the political groups to ensure that the Intergroup can continue.

The Youth Forum urges MEPs to renew the Intergroup as it would be an important sign for young people that the Parliament will listen to their concerns over the next five years, following up on the prominent part that youth played during the European elections campaign.

The Youth Forum is asking all young people to ask their MEPs to support youth and participate in renewing the Youth Intergroup at the European Parliament. MEPs can support the renewal of the Youth Intergroup by filling the form and by campaigning within their political groups, which have the final say on the renewal of the Intergroup.