Voting is underway for the NW Hampshire seat in the UK Youth Parliament. Everest student Katie Allabush has been nominated by her school and is the only Basingstoke candidate up for election. The other two candidates come from schools in Andover.
The UK Youth Parliament is a non-political organisation for young people aged 11 to 18, democratically elected, to represent the voice of young people in their area.
Local MP Maria Miller met up with Katie to hear about her campaign to strengthen the emergency services, and how she plans to take this message out to local schools this week.
Voting closes at 5.00pm on Friday 15 February and, if elected, Katie would serve a two year term as a Member of the Youth Parliament (MYP), including taking part in a special Youth Parliament debate in the House of Commons. All schools have been sent details by Hampshire County Council of how students can vote in this election.
Maria said: “It would be fantastic to have a Basingstoke student elected to the Youth Parliament, and I am urging all students in Basingstoke – and the wider Borough – to cast their vote for Katie. She is a great candidate and I really hope that Basingstoke students will get behind her.”