Chance to be Chancellor

Young people in Maidstone and The Weald are to be given the Chance to be Chancellor and share their opinions on the Youth Budget 2012.

Helen Grant (Con), MP for Maidstone and the Weald, is supporting the launch of Chance to be Chancellor 2012 and is calling on local schools and young people to take up the challenge to learn about, and share their opinions on, Budget 2012.

Run by the Citizenship Foundation, in partnership with Aviva, Chance to be Chancellor is open to all 14-18 year olds across the UK. This annual competition gives young people the opportunity to tell the Government how they think it should spend the public's money. These ideas are then presented to the Treasury, and in 2011 they formed the UK's first Youth Budget.

Last year more than 2,700 people aged 14 to 18 developed their own alternative Budgets as part of our Chance to be Chancellor competition. The winner of the competition was crowned 'Youth Chancellor' and all participants were included as contributors to the Youth Budget. The occasion was marked by a panel debate of MPs chaired by Sam Fleming, Economics editor of the Times. Runners-up of the competition quizzed the panel on issues of the economy.

Talking about the competition, Helen said, "I am a big supporter of this competition. Any way in which we can tap into fresh ideas from younger minds has to be good for our political health. I therefore urge every young person with an interest in politics to take part in this interesting challenge and present a budget case from their own, hopefully novel, perspective."

Running until the 20th February, participants can enter into this national competition to win great prizes and visit HM Treasury in London.

To find out more and get involved visit: www.chancetobechancellor.org.uk

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