new lease on life. so as president of the united states, you are hereby pardoned from the thanksgiving dinner table. may you have a wonderful and joyful life at mount vernon. god bless you. and god bless the united states of america. all right. you see, they are thankful. you have my blessing. >> scratch them on the back of the head. >> do you want to talk them -- to touch them? can somebody explain what all whole wattle thing is about?

>> that is how they sweat. >> interesting. we're glad we have sweat glands. [laughter] otherwise we would be carrying these around. all right. thank you for much. all right, have a good life. >> thank you. >> is this the rest of your family? >> that is the rest of my family. >> how are you? >> are you going to miss these guys good to see you. how are you? ♪

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>> this week marks the 47th anniversary of the assassination of president kennedy. we will call to secret service agents who were protecting the president that day. "q &a".night on c-span's >> the one undecided races is in

new york's first district between 10 bishop and his republican challenger. a recount has been under way since after election day and it is unclear when a winner will be announced. one new house member will be an oklahoma republican. mr. lankford is a religious camp director and will be a first- time officeholder in january. >> now ricardo sanchez, a commander in iraq until 2004 and retired as the highest ranking hispanic member of the military in 2006. the latino leaders network is the most othe event. it is about 40 minutes.

>> we know representative sanchez as an advocate of the latino community and our constituents. she is also a recognized leader, a -- on national security, intelligence, and counter terrorism issues. representative sanchez serve as the vice-chair of the house homeland security committee and also the ranking female member of the armed services committee. who better to introduce general sanchez then the hon. loretta sanchez. please welcome her to the podium. [applause]

>> that you. how are you all doing? it is so nice to see a sold out crowd. thank you to everybody on the committee for this because it just looks so great to stand up here to see all of you today. one of the reasons that i decided to run for congress and i have been in congress for 14 years is i think it is important for us to have leaders in our country. at all leaders, leaders in all sectors -- in the public sector, in government, leaders in the military, leaders in civil society, nonprofits, in our corporations, in our business

arena, and i am talking about the latino community. it is important to shape policy, to move this country forward in a positive way, and i also believe it is incredibly important for us to have role models. we talk about role models for our kids, and as a very important. but role models for ourselves, too, even those who have achieved so much. it is always important to see and to learn and to just think, i can do that, he can do that, i can do that, she can do that, i can do that. latinos serve and have served in our u.s. military in every conflict since the revolutionary war. there are currently over 149,000

latinos in active duty today, and there are over 20,000 latinos who are currently deployed to iraq and afghanistan. and since the beginning of operation enduring freedom and operation iraqi freedom, over 500 latinos, man, and women, have lost their lives. and so is good to honor and recognize brave individuals -- people who go out and make the ultimate sacrifice, some who do not return, others who do. and as the ranking woman on the military committee, 14 years now, i even get coupons chair the terrorism subcommittee -- i have been to afghanistan and to iraq and to some of the other

120 countries where our military service today. and my first visit out to iraq, a commander at the time was a commander called general ricardo sanchez. you can imagine, if you will, a woman in a man's world. now, i know that people still think about the military is a man's world even though we have so many women serving also, but i was on a delegation, and i worked with eight other guys and myself, and we sat down in some's palace -- in sadaam's palace, and our commander was there, he had all of his underlings at around, and it was 15 or 16 in them -- of them to talk about what was going on.

there was a twitter in the room, as i kept asking the general, all the tough questions. i say that to you because there are some people who do not realize what general sanchez was asked to do. he was asked to go in to iraq, he was asked to eliminate the threat, he was asked to settle the place, to clean up the place, and he was asked to do it in what some people call it the fault of war, where there is -- the fog of war, where there is chaos, where there is fire going on, where there are blasts in the middle of the night, where sometimes you do not know who is friendly and who is not, in a country most of us had

never been to, in a country that america did not know that much about these people, in a culture for in two hours. we placed general sanchez in the middle of everything. and i want to remind everybody that our defense secretary, donald rumsfeld, at the time, wanted to do this war inexpensively. so the traditional way for a military to go in is with lots of force and overwhelm. but that is not what happened. and so we placed general sanchez in a very difficult place, with not enough staff and not enough soldiers, and asked him to do the job we had

typically asked others to do with more money, or staff, and start. but since he was the highest- ranking hispanic, that is usually what we anticipate, is it not? go get the job done, but we will give you half the stuff, right? oh, go and get the job, but we do not have a budget for it. all right? get out the latino vote, but we do not have the money, and the newspapers get free press. right? so why would we think it would be different but he did a great shout, and -- a great job, and i have got to tell you, as does my questions were on him as we finished at 2-to our session, i

put my arm around him, he put his arm around mine, and we started speaking in spanish. and the rest of the boys in that crowd did not know what to do. [applause] lieutenant general sanchez came from a very humble texas childhood, and at the age of 15, he signed up for the army junior reserve officer training corps. and in his book, the one you have, lieutenant general sanchez said i loved the military from the very beginning, and by the time i was a junior in high school, i knew it would be my vehicle out of poverty. general sanchez, you exemplify,

you are what so many of our young people do -- go to the military. and you have achieved what so many of us want to see our young people achieve. you are a role model. lieutenant general santos, that served in vietnam and desert storm, in kosovo, and in iraq, as the ground troops commander, and in 2006, when he left the army, and believe me, i have been to a lot of ceremonies where are made men and women leave the army, and most of them are crying, because it is a family, it is their life. it is a little scary, maybe. when he left, he was our highest-ranking hispanic officer.

and, general sanchez, to me you will always be our highest- ranking hispanic officer. ladies and gentlemen, give some wonderful applause to our general, ricardo sanchez. [applause] >> [speaking spanish] [laughter] congresswoman, thank you very much for those humbling comments. secretaries, undersecretaries, distinguished guests, and especially the young people here, the future leaders of our

hispanic community, i appreciate your taking your time to be here and to mickey, thank you for this honor. i am deeply humbled. we are to talk about how we managed to achieve when a leader it gets honored with his award. he talks about how he has done what he has accomplished. i have done absolutely nothing extraordinary in my life. when i have done has been driven by the oath of office that made me a soldier. that oath demands loyalty to our constitution, and has as its foundation a very fundamental commitment to do our duty. as researchers e lee said, duty is to supply must word in our

language. do your duty in all things. you cannot do more. he should never do less. i pray that i have lived up to my professional oath. now i am an old soldier who is ding ed with hcomman international forces in battle. i have been tolerated for 37 years for by a beautiful wife in texas. i am a father who value is patriotism in his children had and has been blessed with two of my daughters, with the oldest having volunteered to go to iraq as members of the army and air force exchange service, because it was their duty to serve the country, not because they had to go. [applause]

and now finally, we have entered the next amazing phase of our lives. we are grandparents. and do not ask me to showed a picture of my granddaughter, because i have about 320 of them in mine iphone, ok? it will take you about 30 minutes to go to them all. the latest from yesterday. given my beginnings the odds must have certainly been against me, but i did not know what the odds were as i grew up deep in south texas, the poorest county in the nation. back then when i was grown up and pretty much still so today. by any standard, in spite of all my challenges, the lord has blessed me with success, happiness, and french ships that go well beyond anything that i had a right to dream of when i was down. i grew up in a very simple world, where the supposed things in life for oftentimes very hard

to come by. a hot bath in the winter, a new pair of schul -- of shoes during the school year, a secondhand sports coat, and warmth and our home. i learned to appreciate the simplest things in life at a very early age. joy came from winning at marbles, director restaurant meal, and a new family car, which i would find out later was 10 years old when my -- when my family -- when my father bought it. i was such a lousy cotton picker that i made more money sleeping -- tweeting stores and gardening than i ever made in the cotton fields. i pay was $1.50 of week, working two jobs as a custodian. the most i ever earned in a week picking cotton -- picking cotton was 75 cents. i was blessed with a mother who died education even though she struggled to get her high school

ged. i remember all of us walking to the high school campus and playing in the school yard while she attended night classes. this was the first example of perseverance that i remember. my personal first challenge with perseverance came when i was told by my fifth-grade math teacher from of all my peers that i was a dummy and would never do well in math. guess what -- maybe this was the motivation to take back then -- [laughter] but i will tell you very honestly that i was quite peeved. but it worked. after that instant i told myself that never again would i be embarrassed by any one in that manner and especially not in math. i took away the lesson that i had to work extra hard to prove myself worthy and probably the most impact full lesson that i learned was that i had to prove wrong those that had low

expectations of me. this would prove critical because that was at the estero -- estero typical environment that i would face immediately upon entering the army. no one expected hispanics to secede. the volume of perseverance and never accepting defeat was reinforced later when i went to see a high school counselor to get help in completing an application for a military academy. instead of helping me -- and i can hear it as clear today as the day she said it -- she said, "what you need to do is you need to go be a welder just like a father," she did not help me. with the help of my junior rotc instructors, i was awarded both r.o.t.c. air force scholarships and was nominated to west point and the naval

academy. [applause] many took credit for helping. teachers and counselors have a special responsibility to encourage young people, instill confidence, set expectations and praise them in order for them to succeed. but it is ultimately the parents that must accept the responsibility for their failures, attitudes, successes, and their motivations. our society must recapture the to focus on education that has been slipping away from american society if we are to retain our greatness as a nation. i hope that i have taught my children and i hope to teach my grandchildren, and all that i have blessed to influence that they must dare to dream of greatness, that they must never allow anyone to keep them from realizing their dreams. many will try, all must fail. you can control your destiny,

but it requires an unrelenting perseverance and a never-accept- defeat approach to life. during my early days i learned that character, love of family, and love of country were important. my parents knew that doing the right thing all the time was important. when i made a commitment i was expected to follow through regardless of how difficult it was, facing the consequences of my actions was not the goshen, integrity was absolute. we were expected to tell the truth. somehow my parents always knew when i had gotten in trouble. it.ore they asked us about t lying make the consequences more severe. the lesson was always to the right thing, even when no one is watching, because someone will be. [laughter] damn neighbors.

this should not the tour us from those constant pursuits of the nearly impossible goal. i have never forgotten that a man of character is valued. when you can compromise your integrity. if you choose to compromise your integrity then is gone forever. when i was in the throes of dealing with abu ghraib i sought counsel from some of the most senior general officers that are alive today. does that i had worked with, and i was told by a very senior general whose name all of you would add immediately recognize that i was too honest for my own good. unfortunately, i knew of no other way to live my life. the life lessons and values that i learned in sex -- in south texas were seared into-sold as i went into a world that was foreign, complex, and unforgiving. i had never seen a black person

until i was a senior in high school. english was a second language. discrimination was not a part of my life. all of us were hispanics, and the five or six and blows that were in my senior class spoke spanish perfectly for survival. [laughter] and service the country was as idealistic notion that was an avid do to escape poverty. quickly we learn that american society was still struggling with integration and nondiscrimination. when i did not know is i was entering a profession which had set the standard for equal opportunity and nondiscrimination for over two decades at that time. i would live a sheltered life. in my initial assignment i understood what it was to be a minority, a hispanic, and a not west point graduate when i was told by my commander that my first efficiency report was going to be about 10% lower than

the average because of where i had come from. he expected that it would take me about six to eight years, half of a career, in order for me to catch up with the rest of the junior officers in the units. i did not know any better. i did not know to comply. when i did know was that i had to work relentlessly and a hell of a lot harder if i was that a chance of success in that unit. after being in the unit for eight months i was rewarded with allows his job in the unit -- dining facility officer -- because i have volunteered in my quest to improve myself to serve on an inspection team that found gross problems with unit's dining facilities. back then we call them mess halls, and they were truly a mess. what the commander told me -- the tenant sanchez, he found the problems, now you get a chance to fix them. i did. after almost two years i had to

serve as a staff officer and out on assignment to the operations staff i was given a desk in the corner, with duties that consumed up to two hours a week. i was reviewing training schedules. that was my sole duty. that was if i took my time. i volunteered for everything in sight. after four months i was nominated and elected to be an aide to one of the general offices in the 82nd airborne division. on my exit call my boss told me that he had fought very hard to keep me from being assigned to this section because all of his experience with hispanics up to that point had been bad. the commander had forced him to give me the job. and it all became clear, the otypes.

was no question if i was to succeed i would have to demonstrate commitment and my duty performance would have to go way beyond what was expected of an average officer. i was doubly disadvantaged. i was a hispanic, and from and artie -- rotc commission. this barely changed during the course of my career. by the way, that loss and i are good friends to this day. i admired him in retrospect because he had the courage to sit in front of me and tell me that he had fought real hard to keep me from joining his team, but then after four and a half months he had and the one that personally recommended the to go pd 8 the camp to the number 2 general officer in the division. these experiences were never far away as i maneuvered into being a professional warrior per it

without being able to share successes with a fellow hispanic officer, that created significant problems for me, and i never had a hispanic role model. in my initial assignment i served with a poor region officer, but did not have a hispanic officer in the same unit again until about 15 years later. i did not serve with a hispanic of higher rank until i was a colonel in 1993, 20 years after i had joined the army. along the way the need for rapid adaptation, flexibility, introspection, emersion into the culture system of the military was indispensable to my success. what i struggled with was the different approaches that my heritage and cultural values drove me to and what was necessary for success. at times they were competing demands. one cannot deny that there was a before mentors and role models that are willing to assist their minority suborns in

understanding and helping them to work to the challenges of the profession. without his band -- hispanics, -- they had discarded their by cs existed in american society. i've met some along the way who understood that i needed professional guidance, and they also understood that my perspective might be slightly different. they under wrote my mistakes. having served with great warriors, i learned that the most desirable straight in a warrior was courage. he might ask, so what is new for a warrior? i am not talking about physical courage. i learned during my time in a uniform that and battled a soldier does his duty and his reaction to adversity is

instinctive, sometimes resulting in amazing feats of physical courage and sometimes resulting in card test. however, the greatest challenge for us is displaying moral courage, and this is applied across every profession. moral courage is that indispensable characteristic of a warner in quest of a war era that amounts selfless when faced with a need to consciously decide whether he will stand up for what is right, knowing all along that all of the possible personal consequences are unfavorable. will you be willing to weather the storm that will inevitably follow? moral courage is an uncommon trade, of virtue, during the toughest of times, and it is the greatest challenge for most of us. many encourage me to speak out during the fall of 2007 against a strategy that got all right, but no one was willing to stand

up and be counted in the maelstrom that followed. lee that true patriotism requires a man to act exactly contrary to that which he had another. the motive which compels them, the desire to do right, is precisely the same. early on i learned that a warrior must always control high ground. this is a life lesson for all in that it applies to all the we do. as we face challenges, we must never leave the moral high ground. you must have the commitment and fake to stay on that high ground knowing that you will prevail. there will be many anxious moments and some very tough seas be navigated, and as martin luther kean jr. said it will not be long because no light can live together.

if you stay on that ground while controversy surrounds you, there will be many with opinions who will express them freely, especially the media, but few will be informed at less one of the truth. you must have the patience and willingness to stay out of the fray because you cannot win. as a young captain one of my bosses told me neville russell with a pay, because you will both get dirty and the people love it. -- and the pig will love it. when you are engaged in controversy you are like a wounded zebra on the serengeti. the herd is mildly interested in your survival. if you survive, they will bring you back into the herd. this was a description given to me by one of those generals that i sought counsel from.

this is an accurate metaphorical comparison, but it must not deter you if you find yourself in those situations. without question, the greatest challenge for a military leader in high command this and -- lies in the politics of war. this not surprising and should be assured, since war is an extension of politics. the american way of war is fractured because modern war demands the synchronization of all elements of national power, and we as a nation have not quite figured out how to do that effectively. the challenges of injured-agency operations often time overwhelm and undermine our war effort in total. as a nation, for this day, we continue to struggle. primarily because we have no mechanism to ensure unity of effort. the partisanship that has fractured our political process these is a contributor to these challenges. i have come away from my

professional experiences with and on about the spirit of faith that is unshakeable and a love of country that is still unsurpassed. i have been asked by some of my foreign military friends, how can you be so well today, given what you, what your country did you? my answer is simple. i was blessed with seeing firsthand that american democracy has devolved into something that is not understood around the world. americans cannot appreciate our democracy unless he has seen other countries struggle with these issues. we have made great strides in advancing toward the ideal human condition that our forefathers envisioned when they enshrine the bill of rights as the first 10 amendments to our constitution. where truly without a question the greatest democracy on earth. we do not understand what other people tell us they do not want what we have in america because it is tough to accept.

while serving as commander of u.s. forces in kosovo, i encountered a leader who repeatedly asked me at a social function, what are you? who are you? i cannot understand his question. i told him i was an american soldier and i was the commander of the forces. he insisted say no, but said, what are you? he said you are not an american. i finally understood the question. i told him that i was a mexican- american. i told him a little doubt about my grandparents and my great grandparents and how they had come to united states. his response was, how can this be? how is it that a minority is commanded all of u.s. forces here in my country? he could not comprehend what it was that equal opportunity.

years later, as recently as a couple of years ago in a conversation with a western european leader, military leader, which started talking about the opportunity for high command and strategic leadership within there are forces, and he stated flat out, he said he would never have become a general officer in our country. your background and ethnicity would have automatically disqualified you. he might have become a lieutenant colonel or a crow. the country gave me great opportunities, but in the end i was asked to retire. we must be proud of being americans. we can never forget the tremendous benefits and rights that we possess, and the west understand the we have a responsibility to serve our country. our opportunities as hispanics within the military are unlimited. there's no other segment of society that has embraced equal opportunity and nondiscrimination to the same

extent as the american military. this is what i meant earlier when i said i have lived a sheltered life. this is not to say that there are problems, because we still have glass ceilings. we still are not represented at the strategic level of leadership at the same rate we're represented across society and in the military over the last 40 years, we have never had more than five to seven hispanic officers in the american time -- in the american army. in the last 75 years, we have had only three active duty three-stars. only one four-star. what is the problem? where just as capable, just as competent, just as well educated as any other segment of this society. furthermore, when we finally hang up our universe --

uniforms, we turn to a society with multiple disadvantage is. not only do week returned to being a minority, but we carry the burden that america has lost touch with its armed forces. sometimes we return to the problems we left behind when we joined our army. corporate america values that characteristic that have always be accredited to a warrior, but what they did not understand is the tremendous broad range of experiences and responsibilities that these warriors bring back to american society. the economic opportunity for a returning warrior is scarce, and america must rededicate itself to correct this injustice. now, in summary -- [applause] in summary, never forget what -- where you came from. it will give you humility and humility provides a window to

the heart and soul of many who would otherwise shun you. many choose to acquaint themselves at the expense -- choose to aggrandize themselves at the expense of others, but that is not necessary to succeed. there is absolutely nothing wrong with being idealistic and focused, and in fact if you are a minority, these traits are absolutely be essential if you are on to have a chance for success, but you must temper these cash receipts -- these characteristics with moral courage and absolute integrity. throughout all my professional career i have learned in battle even the simplest things are hard. the same is true in our daily lives. all the challenges that the lord has allowed me to face have been a blessing, and he has taken me to the heights of lori and the depth of despair. i will away proud of having served my country, and i thank him every day. where not guaranteed an easy

life, and in fact what is guaranteed is that we will struggle through on told sacrifices, desperation, sadness, disappointment, and injustice, but in the and what is most important is that during the tops of times when never left the moral high ground, and we display the courage to walk by faith and not by sight. may god bless you, and thank you for your time. [applause] >> general santos, i am proud to present you with our eagle the leadership award with for your contribution to the latino community and your country.

thank you. -- general sanchez. >> this afternoon aaron williams talks about the 50th anniversary of the peace corps. he is joined by directors of the event here on c-span. earlier this fall, tony blair received the liberty award medal at the constitution center in philadelphia. he was presented the award by former president bill clinton. here is a look.

>> is now my great honor to award the liberty medal to former prime minister and citizen tonyrld schis blair. [applause] >> thank you very much. >> the liberty medal is awarded to those who have strived to give the blessings of liberty to people around the world. see this tonight at 8:00 p.m.

eastern here on c-span. >> the video documentary competition is in full fame. the thing is washington, d.c.. upload your video for the chance to win the grand prize of $5,000. go on line to studentcam.org. >> more than 300 members of the youth parliament debated last month. the students debated several topics, including sex education in schools, the rising cost of university tuition fees, and the war in afghanistan. from london, this portion is one hour 40 minutes.

>> to move a motion, i called mr. tim jennings. >> our government's war in afghanistan has led to 341 men and women being killed. that to be pouring money into the war is ludicrous. by the end of this year, spending will exceed 20 billion pounds. the illegal war in iraq has had so much money wasted on it from the blair era. the government cannot expect us

to accept these cuts and everything else while they spend as much money on war. is this money well spent? the first six months of this year, 3002 daughters 68 civilians died. these are people who go to work and have children. why not invade zimbabwe or north korea? where they said different? if they believe this, of would be there now. this issue runs deeper than tony blair's latest spending. deeper than politics and budget cuts, this is an issue of a fundamental right of a human being's life. by securing our troops, it would be the first step to sort out the mess.

i want them to look a 6-year-old girl in the eye and tell her we're going to keep our troops in there for years to come. the terror of her walking down the street not knong if she is going to step on a bomb or be shot like her dad in the crossfire continues every day of her life. bring the troops home is essential. not just because of the massive negative impact this is happening but because of the facts. this government is killing innocent human beings. thank you. [applause] >> thank you for that introduction to the debate. to oppose the motion, i hope you will welcome him as i call our next speaker. [applause]

>> we pullout by 2012 and terrorism prevails by 2013. we stick to our commitment and complete the task webre year -- would away years of terror. we must stay in afghanistan to win the threat to global security the taliban greeted. until their soldiers and shed a government are reduced to a level that the security forces can do with themselves. british and american officers are needed to mentor and train army officials to maintain the authority of the government. once we have done that job, afghanistan will thrive as an independent and self filling nation. rushing that development will encourage the taliban and enable

them to rebuild the structure that let them take control before we came. given -- giving a date for living will [unintelligible] the unwilling child soldier and that mother who lost her child. can we cut this cancer from our country? others are asking, can we afford to be in afghanistan? should we run away to save money? i say no. we cannot put a price and the things we're fighting for. these are people's lives and these are people's families. we cannot argue with our purses when the liberty of the people is at stake. [applause]

i said the question we really need to be asking ourselves is one of identity. one of conscious. -- conscience. hy should be different now? in afghanistan is not iraq. hamid karzai appealed to the un for troops. the taliban had destroyed democracy. killing of the families of young men who refuse to join their ranks, torturing minority members in denying women their place in society. [unintelligible] would see a backlash against those who do not support them. the afghan people deserve better.

they deserve to live as free people. we need to provide that liberty while we're there. i cannot agree with the notion we should withdraw soon. what we do need to do is to change how we talk about the war immediately. and clarify what we mean by victory. victory would be ensuring the safety of afghan civilians. victory would be honoring the sacrifices of those soldiers who have died so far. victory would be a step forward for afghanistan into an age of self-reliance and honest governance. leaving would put at risk the nine years of toil that our troops have spent healing this nation. this conflict began because afghanistan's government asked for help. they were not the ones who

needed us. i believe the real victory of military intervention is the genuine difference it has made in the grassroots level for the people of afghanistan, the people for whom this war has been fought. we choose freedom over fascism. we're there for however long it takes. [applause] >> thank you for that contribution. we are after today's fire cracking start. she is not a member of parliament. i would like to welcome my wife. [cheers and applause]

she is a keen supporter. thanks for coming. i would like to ask the woman at the back of standing there. i believe she is at the southwest. >> this is a big issue for young people from my area. it does affect us and the vast majority of teens i am representing have parents who have been in afghanistan or preparing to go. it is true that we in the military hold great pride in our troops and are incredibly proud of them and the massive job they're doing. we are holding up a government that need support. by being there we're losing valuable human lives. these are not soldiers we're

losing, these are people. these people have families left behind. they have families, they have friends. the army is a close community. when someone dies, it kills every little part of that person. i do not know if you have lost a vital member of your family but it brings your entire world crashing to a halt. imagine waking to find that your dad is gone and will never return. not that he is disappeared, that he has died and you'll never ever see him again. it has to start. -- stop. they want to protect the ones who are lucky to survive. oiur heroes are given a job the

government wished -- has not equipped them properly for. if we cannot afford to equip them, where we sending them there? it is a crime to shoot at someone. it is a crime to put someone who is not equipped in front of that bullet. [applause] considering the time scale has been under question, we find it more difficult. children whose fathers and brothers and sisters are out there fighting, withdraw is a beneficial course of action. it would be wise to make sure the afghan government is stable before we leave. our armies cannot -- can achieve

that if we concentrate now. we can bring our boys home to yet another triumphal return. [applause] >> thank you. i am looking for a contributor from the west midlands. the young women here. please. >> we have talked about conscience and our moral compass. where is morality when thousands of civilians are dying due to the crossfire? this may seem like a huge number. it is minimal compared to the thousands of civilian casualties. what is right or moral about this? >> somebody from your chair. the young man here. >> it is important to room

remember that many of this fighting and losing their lives are young people. they are friends and family, our neighbors and our support is unwavering. with hundreds of our brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, cousins, neighbors, and friends losing their lives and the government is spending billions in a time when we're facing savage cuts. we need to ask ourselves questions. is the input beneficial to the citizens of afghanistan in britain? the answer to both these questions appears to be no. [applause] >> the east of england. the young men here. >> when we first entered afghanistan, we had ever --

approval rating. besides losing lives, good, honest lives, the approval rating has gone down per we no longer prove. i ask you this. where is the honor of abandoning a country that we initially invaded? our soldiers, our fellow people want to fight. it is their job and they love what they're doing. why should we pull them back and bring them into a country, there will be working but not doing what they are trained to do. we have not the honor for them to do this. they want to fight. i say let them fight. thank you. >> the east midlands.

who have we got? >> the gentleman there. >> what is the legacy we will leave the children of tomorrow? the death, war, fear, and hate. there is no glory in death, only in life. let us put the grade to back into britain. g -- great back into britain. >> i do not believe we should have said point to bring the troops back. we should bring the back as soon as possible. we should come back when the government can show the human rights to their own people. >> thank you.

>> we have spent money to send soldiers to risk their lives. [unintelligible] not risking their lives are getting killed or head. we should make love, not war. our government is killing our soldiers. >> thank you. >> bacon tricare from northern ireland. -- a contributor from northern ireland. >> i would like to say that i did not see that there is any way when honor can be preserved when innocent lives are being lost through where is the odder when we stand there killing innocent afghan civilians? it is a disgrace. there have been numerous protests to bring british troops home from both sides of the argument.

what i propose is a gradual withdrawal end it is more efficient than having a set date. when we have that duty to go out and defend, we also have the right to preserve life, to stand up for people who want to carry on with their lives. they did not choose for britain to invade. the afghan civilians did not ask for this to happen. i am sure that many of them want to carry on their life and we should preserve that and we should let that happen. for our own moral good. thank you. >> thank you. i would like to hear someone from wells. -- wales. >> thank you. when we went to afghanistan, we made a pledge to the government would rid them of their fascist

regime. we would stop the terror, the tyranny they suffered every day. can we with good conscience break that promise to them? no. i think we stay in there and finish the job and we bring our boys home. [applause] >> someone from the northeast of england. what about the young man there? >> thank you. oscar from newcastle. i think the solution we should be aiming for is peace. i do not think we should pull out until the job is done. it would be totally disrespectful to the men and women, the british men and women who have lost their lives. it would be disrespectful to them that we pulled out before the job is done. >> thank you. someone from london. i have a rich choice.

the young woman there. >> i would like to say that as soon as we entered afghanistan, as soon as we send troops there, it became our moral responsibility to solve the issues. --t we're doing this by war it is not effective with over 300 soldiers having died. maybe even when we do, we need to find something that will work just as well. it is our responsibility and our choice and we choose to undertake that. [applause] >> thank you. we have not had a sell these speakers. this yemen there. >> -- we have not had a south east speaker. >> the war could not be won and

americans and the british and we were flooding a -- blogging a dead horse. it is costing this country billions of pounds. at a time when spending cuts are coming left, right command center. with the elections, the government said they did all stop corruption. in helmand province, over 100 soldiers have died and 500 people voted. that is a lot of soldiers for a small knot of people. they did say the elections were a success. pictures of people ripping up voting slips and burning ballads, is this a success? they were barking up the wrong tree when they said it was a success. this will keep going. it puts us into even more debt

to and causes more trouble and will not get us anywhere. >> i am looking for a female speaker from the southwest. >> the simple solution would be to let the troops with the want to do. if they want to fight kamala them be there and fight. if they want to come home, let them come home. [applause] >> how about the west midlands? the gentleman there with the gray suit and dark tie. >> thank you. there is no solution to this war. if there is no solution, what makes that -- one example are the troops giving to assess in people? what makes this more different than a playground fight? in a playground fight, children decide to have a fight and both

get in hurt and get in trouble. the civilians are in trouble and the innocent people are in trouble and our economy is in trouble. we should pull out because it is going nowhere. >> the man here. let's hear you. people speaking from here, the microphones are not picking up that well. you need to get a bit nearer to it. splendid. >> it is foolish and naive to suggest the right thing to do is to withdraw from afghanistan now or the future. we went in there and we got a clear and well with their. to make sure that it is safe from terrorism and protectioprog our national interests.

the outgoing head of the armed forces said that if we were to disrupt the strategy we have got, it would save the taliban. -- say to the taliban that we give a better way surrender. one of the saving graces is to preserve spending for the forces. to withdraw now or in 2012 would not only be of the trail of the people but it a trail of the last nine years. we cannot see that this is a drain of finances. it is a just cause. >> some people look as though they are about to explode. the young woman here. >> if a pullout from

afghanistan, afghanistan will not be stabilized and forces will not be strong enough to protect citizens on their own. leaving now would be to -- giving the taliban victory. we cannot afford them to feel they can win. this would result in more terrorism attacks as a result. >> thank you. what about the young man there? >> from london. about 25,000 young people, we feel passionately and believe the deaths of 341 uk troops, a number that is guaranteed to rise is not worth the risk when there is other in different

countries such as zimbabwe. there is terror going on there. in one week to buy any of the new -- in one week, [unintelligible] you're talking about terrorism. there is the instability of dimon or pakistan. >> i can take a couple more. the girls are a bit under presented. we have to make good. the younger one there with the pink top. >> i represent west sussex in the southeast. thank you. the war was launched in response to the 9/11 attacks. we were to remove the taliban.

considering the lack of results and justification of the war have not results. the western forces face a growing insurgency and endless war. people should not be losing their lives. the reason we enter the war are ridiculous. saddam hussein had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. there were no nuclear weapons at all. where we're losing our men to lie when the tactics we're using are expensive and not working? we are raising [unintelligible] orkshire. >> may i remind everyone that

people are going off to fight know full well that may lose their lives and their family know full well that may lose their lives and it is a risk they are willing to take. >> the gentleman with a pink tie. >> the war in afghanistan, to you know the nature or origin of this conflict? the people of our country do not. this generation, our generation has paid and will continue to pay for the errors of the previous. the young people of this country, us, the future. we are here to correct the their wrongs. 341 death of british troops were

spoken of. if we pull out now, that will be all for nothing. do you want to save those 341 good men and women dying with no cause? we have started the job. we must finish it. we stand here now united in a place. i do not urge you to vote for yes or no but what is best for humanity, not for the country. thank you. >> it is time to conclude the debate. i called 20 people. there is a further debate to follow. please give it a welcome to ms. emma chadwick.

[applause] >> thank you. on behalf of all young people across the uk, i would like to start by saying thank-you to the troops out fighting today. [applause] the fact we are debating this issue today proves how much young people appreciated and acknowledged our soldiers' river. we would not be the great nation we are if it were not for our hero soldiers. the taliban poses a real threat. not just in afghanistan, but here in the u.k.. their tentacles spread far and the central thrust of terrorism

is from the afghan reasoregion. our troops are risking everything so i could arrive here today on the tube. so we can walk down the street without hurrying. they are keeping us from danger. how much with the taliban debt if we stopped our efforts now? we would be giving them an advantage. history has taught us we have to fight for freedom. fight for safety and fight for what we believe in. yes, i believe conflict can be a backward step towards peace. a necessary divide to protect what we hold dear. remove yourself from this situation and it is time to end

the struggle. is that time now? is it time we admit defeat? do we stop the heartbreaking death of our innocent civilians? these are the deaths of mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, husbands, wives, noto mention the phenomenal amount of money. 20 billion pounds is a massive bill. especially when we consider the recent government budget. this money could be spent on hospitals, schools, subsidize transport, universities, but can we afford to take your risk? can we put a price on our safety? our freedom? every day, i turn on the news and see pictures of young men in the hospital or gun in hand and running across the desert.

it is heartbreaking. i am thankful we are reminded. i am glad we do not forget their efforts. that would be a crime in itself. one thing is clear. the efforts that our troops are putting is commendable and even -- they're willing to risk all to defend our great nation. whichever way we vote today, we will be forever grateful. thank you. [applause] >> thank you for that memorable wind up speech. this has been the most highly charged debate so far that we have had and the quality of contributions has been truly of

standing. thank you, each and everyone of you for taking part in doing so with such skill, self- confidence, and sincerity. the parliament will consider the fifth and last motion of the day, relating to transport and young people as printed on the order paper. to move the motion, i call on our next speaker. >> here we said, 300 elected representatives within the most historically influential house. the problem of transportation remains. should it be cut or saved from the spending cuts? i ask you this? why do my friends in london from age 16-19 have free

transport while the west midlands do not? my sisters in the southwest pay outrageous fees. at the end of the day, young people get an education and a job and benefit the economy. what is happening is they are struggling for that transport. at the end of the day, it does not benefit our economy. a lady with in my constituency said young people should pay like anyone else. where the different? we have a lower minimum wage. young people must work shorter hours. that is where we need to be transferred. young people are starting a full-time education to be leaders of this nation. that is why we need cheaper transportation.

the lady has the freedom of owning a car. the safety debt and savings and she is entitled for subsidized public transport. we're in a recession and we are realistic. we do not want free public transport. what we do need is subsidized fares for all those with full- time education. cheaper transport will enhance the prospects of young people such as those of potential athletes who go to the local track to bring records. scientists to go to medical school to cancer. potential lawyers to go to college to break the chains of injustice. that is where we need cheaper transport. within my constituency, it is 3 pounds 60 to get to the nearest college and back. that is 40 weeks of schooling. the mathematicians can work out. 726 pounds.

that is wasted. 726 pounds that could have friends spent on new books and school equipment. in the back pocket of the bus company. that is where we need cheaper transport. if we together fight and achieved the simple objective of public transport for all young people, we have a better increase thecas educational level. let this campaign show what we are capable of. what do we want -- we want them to be able to pay their transport fares comfortably and easily so they can carry on to be that future politician. i want 10 million of this and 300 of you to declare the time

that cheaper transport has come and a new day has become. -- begum. begun. [applause] >> thank you for that excellent contribution. to oppose the motion, ms. w hitney may. >> we have a massive debt. 43 billion pounds a year. we cannot afford the luxuries. the schools educate the young. an ide world, a concession cards would benefit all this.

something has to give. this cannot be our only chance. cancers affect one in three of us. the hearts and souls of families are ripped out by these decisions. -- diseases. more of these families could afford the heartache of the disease. it is warre[unintelligible] the armed forces are protected and risk their lives. it is more important to say that we have sufficient equipment to keep ourselves safe. it is key to ensuring the future of arent people.

[unintelligible] in has meant bigger cuts. it is the right choice and procedure. decent people are teachers, lawyers, and doctors. is important that our future is safe. i understand transport is said is incredibly- important. it affects the u.k. it is estimated that 1.4 billion pounds is needed for concessionary trouble. with 3 billion pounds a year in debt, it is inconceivable. would you rather as stable education system, a safe place to live, and a functioning health service, or

[unintelligible] thank you. >> people who have spoken are not to stand again. to maximize the number of contributors, it would be great if everyone who did speak spoke briefly. do we have anyone from the east midlands? itnon-people are finding hard to pay for their bus fares to get to education. if the fees rise, this will make it more difficult. because we're seeing a big trend in the number of young people who are going abroad to get their education, the results

is we're losing our future doctors, teachers, our lawyers. these are the institutions which make up -- us succeed. there will get jobs abroad as well. we will miss out on these young people we have in this country. we cannot let this happen. it will have seen how bad we came out of the downturn and we cannot see another one. >> the northeast of england. let's hear from you. >> i want to say this is about spending cuts and again transport. from my constituents, we have barely any transport. do not penalize me because i am a full-time student and i want to learn.

to not penalize me because i want to give back to the economy. i want to have a good career so i can give to this economy. because of this economy, we think of these cuts that we're forgetting what we're cutting. this economic downturn has nothing to do with the young people. let's not let this if -- affect the young people. we need to focus on the universal subsidy. quality for education. thank you. >> someone from london. the young women here. thank you. >> what i would like to say about the cuts as well. thinking about where we're going to get the money to pay for the

subsidies, a lot of people who have earned more money to not pay as much taxes they should. we should ask them to pay their taxes as well. it is important to be able to get around to schools, to after- school clubs that want to go to, to places where they can learn new things and not just the board backs northern ireland. -- not just be bored. >> northern ireland. >> wales. time for wales. the woman there. >> i think our fees are reasonable.

to get from my area to cardiff pounds.s three pensioners get it for free. the families cannot afford to give their children money. the price of a ticket will be just about the amount iron. >> the young gentleman there. >> thank you. everyone must face the burden in these cuts. we must all be in this together.

young people cannot be exempt from this, mr. speaker. it does not matter whether we need a free bus pass spread it does not matter if we need subsidization. every person needs schools, hospitals, police, needs to stay safe. every ung person deserves that in this country regardless of the fiscal situation. we cannot look upon young people subsidies as protected from the cuts because it would not be fair that way. [applause] >> i am looking in the direction of your upshur -- yorkshire. the woman in the brown jacket. >> it costs me 8 pounds for five days to get to and from

college. my mum gives me 3 pounds a day. it is my grandmother paying for me to continue my education. >> thank you. the west midlands. what about the young man in the back with a blue pullover? >> why should the over 60's get free transport when the young have a social life? [applause] transport should not be a barrier to young people. thank you. >> we need somebody from the southwest. who have we got from the southwest? the young woman there.

>> not only do we have to pay for the activities we go to, we also have to pay for transport. even if you do get a job when you're young, how are you expected to fund all the things on our own? >> i would like to mention that people who were there to support you. i would like you to welcome [unintelligible] [applause] he served in the house of commons for 40 years.

you can take him as an example of someone who always spoke his mind, bluntly, robustly, always in a way that was a credit to him and a demographic -- democratic process. [applause] thank you for being here and thank you for supporting the u.k. youth parliament. the east of england. the woman waving her hand who looks quite beside herself. let's hear from you. >> before i was fortunate to be on the parliament, i was on the assembly. my main issue was transport. i would -- last year, they're

referring to issue at a discount card for young people in my area. because of the cuts in budget, this has slipped through my fingers. this is not about me. this is about the young people. why should i be forced to pay 70 pounds for a discount card? it is not fair. if we're going to focus on the cuts and said we cannot do it, how are we going to get what young people want done? we're supposed to represent young people. we should be pushing for the issues we believe in strongly -- we need to be realistic. we cannot ignore the issues that are prominent. we deserve the first. >> the young man here who has been waiting a long time. >> thank you.

young londoners always have one of these. it allows us to have free travel on buses and reduced fares on trains. this is crucial for us to be able to access the education we need. the college education they need. in areas like mine, some engines do not run in certain areas of the borough. where we not giving them this opportunity to access a career they want, social workers, health workers, why aree not allowing them to pursue that chosen career? [applause] >> thank you. someone from the west midlands. >> ththe woman from the end the.

>> i do not get one thing. you have to pay the same as an adult but we do not get the same privileges. you're not allowed to drive until you are 17. you're not allowed to vote until 18. you have to. all fares. -- you have to pay adult fares. >> som9eone from -- someone from your shirt -- yorkshire. >> i feel it is most strongest. the biggest region in the u.k.

we feel transport is worse than others. i have to pay 700 pounds a year for transport in my area. how much died early last year? 900 pounds. unfair isee how fai predictably affect young people. where you study depends on what you have. i have lots of friends who live in the middle of nowhere. they have to go to a place where it is not as academically good. we have to invest in transport and infrastrture. we need to make sure that all young people have fears that can afford. thank you. >> i need to call from the northwest. a young men here with the red tide.

>> there are the difficulties in maintaining a secondary education when there is not a solid replacement for that. [applause] >> thank you. it is time for someone from wales. the gentleman at the back. thank you. >> the question should be asked, should we cut the wages of the bus drivers, train drivers, people that sell petrol that make the machines rather than should we cut the money given to young people to pay for their travel? >> how about a young woman from northern ireland? do we have such? someone from northern ireland?

you may very well speak. >> congratulations to morgan. the fact he is here shows the progress that is being made. we should be protected from spending cuts. the answer could include [unintelligible] basice fd fares are a essential for young generation who are bearing the brunt of the cuts. thank you. >> thank you. what about the young woman in the back row? >> how can you expect all young people to have subsidize transport when people in rural

areas do not have transport? it is more important have a consistent and reliable system for all young people before you think about letting them get on for free or cheap. [applause] >> thank you. how about someone from the se? this young woman here. xm 13 so i am quite young compared to most of you. i can claim a child's fare. i think it is unfair that you have discount cards from the age of 16 on word and you still pay if you do not have the cheap rocard, you have to pay the other price for 16 and up. that means you have -- i have two more years of climbing a child's fare. i going to tell me i have to pay an adult fare when i cannot vote, drink, drive, and i still

have to legally be in education for least -- depending on where you go. it is not fair that a pensioner who has access to a car can get free transport while someone our age has to pay it their full of gold price or a ridiculously high price. -- a full price or ridiculously high price. >> thank you. you deserve our respect. the young man at the back with the grace sued and blue tie. >> my mum has to pay 9 pounds 50 to send me to school a week. i schaub to school most days late because the bus does not

come sometimes. i have to wait an hour and a half to go home because the bus is not come sometimes. we need transport to be consistent and fair. for young people attending school, there should be allowed to have subsidized rides. >> a man who had his hand up. >> one thing keep mentioning, when we are older [unintelligible] they are entitled. [applause] that is nothing to do either. people are talking about cutting petrol prices.

[unintelligible] [applause] the americans are still there. making fun of our elderly people. [unintelligible] >> thank you for that spirited contribution. you have a meghna this and way of linking disparate issues. i would like to move on. >> as it was mentioned, i am from london and am fortunate to have to free transport.

the government are allowing people to struggle to get into colleges and the spending cuts have affected everyone. young people do not have the disposable income that adults had. there should be given some sort of discounted transport across britain. i am from the northwest. if the government cannot ensure that a hospital or school is within walking distance from everyone's house and a young person cannot drive under 17, they should at least make it accessible to everyone because it is not fair to penalize people for not being able to drive, unless they can say that people can drive from the age

of 1, 2, 3, or four, which is not going to happen. >> could we have from london? -- who do we have from london? >> we are the difference between the london region and the other regions. with the discount cards. we have to pay 10 pounds for the cards. that is not fair to you. i would like to apologize. i would like to thank the government for letting us have our cards. they're very handy. we seem to be complaining, which we should be because it is not completely equal. how can we claim to be the united kingdom if we are not completely united? how can we be united if we are not completely equal?

[applause] >> thank you. we're getting toward the end. the young woman at the back. we need to wrap up. >> i would like to point out this is not a simple choice for discount cards. i live in the south of har tfordshire. i cannot afford to go out there. i go in to london because i can afford it. it makes a massive difference. and i really hope that it is not -- the over 65 in that connection the vote for the government is the reason why they are getting the reduced fare and we are not.

>> the man with -- there. [laughter] >> back there. >> i am from lincolnshire. in our rural community, we do not have anything. it is not acceptable. our market towns have had a lot of job losses, and yet we have job opportunities in the county of lincoln. and yet young people cannot even get into lincoln because it is a lack of efficiency and the cost of travel. this is unacceptable. i was talking to lost his job. he is 17, not entitled to benefits. he is not an education. the job opportunity is in lincoln, but he cannot get there. enough is enough. we have been left behind. it is time that we saw transport

schemes introduced into lincolnshire. thank you. [applause] for a smallt time number more occurred we can take a woman who is about -- we can take the woman in front. it's you. >> i was in the most rural areas. 1,440 pounds is the much i pay to get to my training every week. i need to decide whether i can go and carry on with a hobby or stop because i cannot afford it. many people at our school did not have the access to transport that young people do in other areas. 600 people are in my year. 500 stayed here because they

cannot go anywhere else. our school does not provide the a-levels. they need to reassess their careers. they cannot afford the transport. if i could go to the school that i wanted to go to, it would cost me 3,000 pounds for the etrain station. -- for the train station. i am 16. i am looking to start my driving lessons. even then, they are extortionate prices. i am sure some people here would agree. >> we have one more from the sky. -- from this guy. >> personally, a transport is a very important issue for me. i do not see why i should pay an adult fare. i come from a rural area.

i think it would provide -- to access jobs. if young people paid full fare, it would be to the effect of keeping us in -- thank you. [applause] >> thank you. this concludes the debate. tom aspell, give him a warm welcome. >> thank you. today, you never heard of the many different views on issues that matter to young people. the issue of accessible and affordable transport is a complex one. and one that has many implications for the services that affect whole communities. one question i would like you to think about. would you give euup your seat

on a tram for an old person? >> yes. >> i'm gallad to hear it. the only group that continues to lose out are those under the age of 18. mr. speaker, money is always an issue. in my constituency, in yorkshire, it encompasses an area of 1000 square miles, and it is mainly rural. transport acts as a lifeline to the people so they can get to school, work, and cinema. the assembly has been campaigning for free transport for young people for two years now and are currently running a pilot scheme with young people

aged between 13 and 21. after raising 10,000 pounds in three months, the east writing youth assembly has issued participants with a free travel card, which is 25 pounds on it. once the card is over, the young people get 10 pe% off. what is the need? socializing, taking part in activities, or getting a good education and qualification for a greater life. [applause] nationally, there are 5.5 million people aged between 13 and 19 as opposed to 3.5 million old people aged over 60.

you could argue that old people have worked and they have earned the right to free travel. but you could also argue that they can afford to pay transport, whereas young people who mostly rely on parents and the pocket money and part-time jobs to pay for the necessities of life. money is always an issue. [applause] there's more. should enabling young people to have access to cheap transport be seen as an investment in the future of this country and be a major part in future economic growth? in this time of spending cuts, local authorities, health services, and the quality sector are all looking at ways of

saving money. what you need to ask yourself is -- would you give up your course regaoyster card? would you give up your raúl card so that the new hampshire as a budget doesnot get c -- the ns not get cut? a cut to travel cards -- in the fronting line services such as the police, the armed forces, education, youth services, money is always an issue. to conclude, mr. speaker i hope

that when they vote on this issue, we think long and hard and weigh all options before making a final choice. during the time i have been speaking, three people sent -- three babies have been born or run the country. this could really make an impact on their lives and not just our own appear. would you really give up your seat for an old person? you may just have to. thank you to the youth workers for making this day possible. [applause] thank you to the young people at all for watching this day and thank you, mr. speaker.

[applause] >> tom, thank you for concluding the debate today, but also for doing so in such inspirational fashion, upon which you should be congratulated. we'll come to points of order in due course. we have them every day in this chamber. that includes the debate for they -- that conclidudes debate for today. the opportunity is for the youth parliament to vote. how can i possibly fail to recognize and draw the attention of the parliament to the

presence of the hon. gentleman, john hayes, of the further education minister? [applause] john hayes is not only the education minister, he is one of the great parliamentary characters, a legend in his own lunch time, and he is a member who will cite no end of authors, poets, and playwrights whom he's read. whose work he's thank you for coming. [applause] on this occasion, i shall spare you might impersonation of the appear him.

those of you on my right should leave the chamber by the door behind me, and on the left into the lobby behind you. those on my left, should leave by the doors at the far end and turn left into the no lobby behind you. in the lobby, you will be given papers with the five debates listed on separate colored papers. you should place across in the yes or the no box on each ballot paper and hand the completed ballot papers to the doorkeepers in the lobbies after words, returning there after to your place in a chamber. house of commons staff will be on hand to assist you. needless to say, in respect of each vote, you should vote only

once. the division lobbies are now open. order, order. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> order. thank you. i know that a small number of people have indicated that they want to raise points of order. there will be an opportunity, but not just yet. fairly shortly. and equally, i will take great

pleasure and asking -- engel =- to saysha engel something. i get the distinct impression that members of the youth parliament have much enjoyed their session here today. am i right? [applause] you will want mew on behalf of each and every one of us to place on record our warmest thanks to a number of people with of whom this event would not have taken place or would not have done so with anything like this smooth and seamless efficiency that we have

enjoyed. first and perhaps most prominently, from the bottom of my heart, i would like to say thank you to a true great, dedicated professionals who has taken this project from consultant to execution, a great servant of the house of commons -- lawrence ward. [applause] brick.e, you've been a it is appreciate it. the deputy principal doorkeeper, quote i am trying to espy, robin fell. he's gone home. [laughter] he's counting the votes. so he is not here to be thanked, but let's thank him because he has done a wonderful doppljob.

robin, take a bow. >> thank you. you've been really good and easy to work with and fun. thank you. >> the principal clark of the table office, one of the most senior persons who has devoted his professional life to the service of the house and to has been so we indispensable in the run-up and the conduct of today's proceedings, the man with the wig. andrew -- [applause] i'd like to thank the head of

parliament's education service with which it has been my pleasure and privilege to work very closely indeed over the last 16 months. i think the education service of the house which reaches out to, build links with schools and colleges is one of the great assets of the house and part of the progressive movement we are making to engage with civil society and to encourage the participation of young people, and the head of that service, tom o'leary, does an outstanding job. [applause] thank you for everything you have done and everything you do throughout the year. paul harvey from the office of

the sergeant at arms. where are you? [applause] your role in -- and working with you has been fundamental to us being able to do our business in a way that is efficient but also secure, and that is very much appreciate it. anne foster. anne's role has an important, -- has been important, too. and there is one group of people that i absolutely must not forget to thank on behalf of all, and you have to thank as well, and that is the catering team. now, this year, colleagues, we

have not had the pleasure of the company of the company of members of the scottish used parliament. this goddess used parliament, while we have been meeting today, here -- the scottish youth parliament have been meeting and debating. i can say only that i hope that they have had as rewarding and experience there as i hope you just you've experienced here on the green benches in the chamber of the house of commons. last year was the first time you had the opportunity to debate here, and i was struck, very struck, by the shear quality of the contributions, by the self- confidence, but the point is that everybody could witness. we have seen it again today. just to underline the significance of what you have done, of how much you have

achieved, let me say speaking for myself, and it may be that other colleagues would say the same for themselves, when i was your age, i was not speaking on a regular basis in public places in front of large numbers of colleagues. skills. honed those i had not acquired a that degree of self position and self- confidence, so what you have accomplished is something very special and very meaningful. fulfillede you feeel and proud for two reasons. for yourselves, for your own advancement and improvement, the development of your own self confidence and assertiveness skills, and that is important.

and secondly, because quite separately from the benefit yourself, you have contributed of the beneiffit reputation of young people. that is to say that as a consequence of today, i think we can all agree that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. not only have you done right by yourselves, but you have done right by the young people of this country whoms it's been your privilege today to represent. whenever i go round the country and talk to young people, i am always at pains to say that what ever you think of the political system, the democratic system we enjoy, though far from perfect, is vastly better than the condition in which many people have to exist across the globe.

and when i sat on the international development select committee, i visited some of the most conflict-stricken and poor parts of the planet. very often, that poverty was created or exacerbated by conflicts and by the abuse of human rights. and i met people who would have given their eye teeth for the opportunity to speak out and speak up and say what they think. in many parts of the world, there are still young people, and also people of middle-aged and elderly, who cannot do so, because they could be imprisoned or tortured or raped or killed. so at least here in this country, we should regard the glass as half full if not better than that. and we know the importance of politics, what ever you think of the system. politics matters, because the quality of education we enjoy,

the standard of health care on offer, the state of our transport infrastructure, whether or not we wage war, the extent to which we can tackle the disfiguring scars of global poverty all depend on laws made, money spend, decisions reached in westminster and whitehall. so you have taken part in a very important process, and i hope it will come to be regarded as completely uncontroversial that you should come here each year it in addition to all you do throughout the year to have your say, to improve yourself, to represent your community, and to do credit to young people. we have a role in the house that we do not refer to people outside the house, but i will simply mentioned today that i am sure there will be regional media interest. i know for a fact that tony crew

e-politics.m c someone said that someone was here from "the times." i hope that those people from the media won't recognize that this is a really positive story -- will recognize that this is a positive story about young people showing what they can do. you have to put up with a lot of wholly unrepresentative, inappropriately- negative, sometimes discriminatory covered in the media. i hope that our friends in the media will recognize today that this has been a tradramatic success. it is your success. i am proud to be able to tell you, that although i love being speaker, the two most enjoyable days so far in the course of my

speakership or friday at the end of october when i chaired the proceedings of the youth parliament last year and today. thank you very much. [applause] now, colleagues, on behalf of the shadow leader of the house, i know all of you will want to hear and will give a very warm welcome to the hon. member for derbyshire, mysu colleague natasha engel. >> mr. speaker, i am the mp for the northeast derbyshire.

east midlands region. thank you very much for coming and he was so much for inviting me to speak to you today. on a normal day, i have been a back bencher. this is my first and possibly only ever time at the dispatch box. if anyone were to ask me if there is any debate on any day that i would like to take part as a front bench speaker it would be today, and it would be here and now. i am enormously proud list to be here today and to join you. and being allowed to take part on your day is an enormous privilege to me. it is something that not that many years ago, mr. speaker, who was in those days a plane mr., and i would of thought this would of been completely impossible. the amount of opposition we have from our colleagues all across

the house to having young people to have anybody who is not a member of parliament speaking from the green benches was really quite unbelievable. so, really, i want to say a special thank you, because i think you, as members of the u.k. youth parliament and myself, we are in a special position to know exactly how important this is and exactly how much work has gone into making today possible. and today would not have been possible if that man was not in the speaker's chair. so if we could say a big thank you to mr. speaker. [applause] and that is sincere. i know that all of your applause is sincere as well. because what you have done is allow these young people today

to demonstrate and to take the positiveity to vigive a representation of what young people are capable of doing. you have an absolutely brilliant. well done, well done. and most of all, the reason why this is so important is because those people, and there are some people who have their doubts about letting young people use this chamber once a year, those people if they came here today, they would see for themselves not only is there nothing to worry about, but there is an awful lot to celebrate. so well known for being so fantastic, not just today but last year and well -- well done. very briefly, one of the

problems of going last is that everything you want to say has already been said. i just wanted to add my own thanks to lawrence and the sergeant at arms, without you, it would not have been possible today. to andrew in the wig, thank you very much, and the clerks. and to robin and the doorkeepers. it is not just today, it is every day. without their work, i do not think that we appreciate what they do on a daily basis. thank you very much to the doorkeepers. thank you. [applause] i want to finish off with this very big thank you. that is to you, all of you who have been here today. you have been fantastic. you have shown us as mp's how we

can do it, how we should do, and be run.liament could thank you all very, very much. thank you. [applause] >> tom jennings. i think he is going to say a few njwords. >> i think we have a mass of t whatever one who has made this day possible. we want to thank the u.s. workers -- we have a massive thank you to everyone who made this day possible. we would like to thank the youth workers. they have shown that young people can do politics differently. they have shown that we are making our marker. thank you.

>> your results. members keep sprouting up from all over the place, and i had just spotted tony cunningham. member of the opposition whip's office. we are grateful to him for his interest. we are waiting for the results of the votes. i hope that people who are still eligible whiill come again. i appreciate that some people are disappointed because they did not get called. that happens in parliament all the time. we have striven very hard to make sure that every region is represented fairly. i have made a particular effort to ensure that it has been gender balance in the debate.

if anybody is disappointed, i am genuinely sorry, but we have striven very hard. i think there are points of order, i am told. the gentlemen here. point of order. >> i think it is fair to say that all the youth workers have done a tremendous amount of work, but not only because of the work they've done, but they have done it at a time when their future is uncertain. as we look at the future of the youth parliament, i know that many of my colleagues could not be here because of cuts in the budget. our local authorities are the ones you. investments in us and support us -. they do it because they care. that group at the back

houppelande everything for us and made our lives -- that group of back who made everything easy for us and made our lives easier. thank you. >> by the way, natasha spoke with tremendous passion and sincerity. you often read about the different sides. the great thing about this ttracks s that it a trac support from all sides. i am shared with you at the annual meeting at the conversation i had with a member last year before i chaired the debate. it was a private conversation, so i will never name that member. he has now retired from the

house. he was a long serving member. as an example of what rank hostility we encountered. that member said to me after i became speaker, he had been a vociferous opponent of your right to sit here. and he said to me, mr. speaker, i gather you want to share the debates. >> i said, that's right. let me tell you, it would be a complete an unmitigated disaster. i said, i do not think that is right. he said, i have served here for over "x" decades. i said, i understand that. what is your argument? he said, i know what i am talking about. at the very least, these young people will leave chewing gum all over the chamber. at the worst, pen knives will be

used and the damage to the benches will be done. i said, you are completely wrong. these young people will be pleased to come to the chamber. i predict to you two things -- they will speak extremely well. and "b," they will behavre damn sight better towards each other than many of my colleagues do on a day-to-day basis. [applause] members of the youth parliament, i know it's never popular to say, i was right. but i think i can be permitted to make an exception on this occasion. i was right, because you have proved me right. thank you. now, the very last business of the day, you'll be pleased to

know. and those waiting to transport you will be pleased to note. the ballot results -- motion one, sex education. for the motion, 211. against the motion, 104. so , as we say in parliamentary language, where it is ayes and no's. the ayes have it. the motion number to grow -- university tuition fees. for the motion, 57. against the motion, 267. [applause] so the no's have it. motion number 3 -- job opportunities. for the motion, 56.

against the motion, 271. have it.'s motion four -- on the war in afghanistan. for the motion, 137. against the motion, 179. so the no's havae it. and mostiotion five 0non transport and young persons. for the motion, 239. against the motion, 80. so the ayes have it. [applause]

order, order. [applause] >> coming up next on c-span, peace corps director marks the 50th anniversary and talks about the importance of the peace corps in the 21st century. after that, at 8:00 p.m., bill clinton presents tony blair with the liberty award metal. later, a discussion on how u.s.

presidents have dealt with a nation being in crisis. in "washington journal" tomorrow morning, a financial reporter for "the washington post" ylan mui discusses the latest predictions for retail sales. then george liebmann on ways to create jobs for young people. after that, author bradford fitch talks about the powers that lobbyists have and how to approach members of congress. plus, your e-mails and phone calls. "washington journal" at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. every weekend on c-span-3, experience american history tv, starting saturday at 8:00 a.m. eastern, 48 hours of events telling the american story. speier historic speeches a