Young Liberals is the youth and student organisation of the British Liberal Democrats. Membership is automatic for members of the Liberal Democrats aged under 30.[6] It organises a number of Fringe events at the Liberal Democrat Conference, which is held twice each year.
Young Liberals exists to campaign on issues affecting young people and students, with branches across the UK. The organisation is run by young people and acts as a pressure group within the Liberal Democrats.[citation needed]
The constitution of the Liberal Democrats requires an affiliated youth and student wing.[7] Accordingly, Young Liberals is a Specified Associated Organisation (SAO) of the party. It is granted voting rights on various Liberal Democrat committees, such as the Party's Federal Board.[citation needed]
The Executive is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Young Liberals, ensuring the organisation's operations are compliant with its own and the Liberal Democrats constitution, ensuring that the organisation is compliant with all relevant laws, and maintaining affiliations, branch accreditation and electing representatives to outside bodies which the Young Liberals are given representation on.[10]
Members of the Executive also have their own portfolios, which each officer being responsible for a certain area of the organisations operations. Members of the Executive, barring the LDCRE representative, are elected annually by the general membership. If a vacancy arises during the term of the Executive, it is filled either through a co-option process or a by-election.[10]
Honorary roles
There is an Honorary President and six Honorary Vice-Presidents of the organisation, who are elected by the membership to work alongside the executive to support the organisation, advise and often act as a form of institutional memory as well as give the Executive guidance and to act as spokespeople within the wider party.
In addition to the Executive, there are seven committees that are responsible for the administration, direction and implementation of policy and strategy corresponding to their area. These committees have a membership consisting of the relevant Federal Officers, representatives of the three states, and directly elected members who are elected alongside the Federal Executive every year.[10] The State representatives are also elected by the memberships of the state organisations - English Young Liberals, Scottish Young Liberals and Welsh Young Liberals.[12][13]
The current committees are Finance and Resources Committee, Elections Committee, Communications and Campaigns Committee, Events Committee, Policy Committee, International Committee, and Diversity Committee.[10][13]
Young Liberals Branches are organised under regions and nations. They are small scale local groups often centering on a particular university, or local Liberal Democrat Party.[14] Branches provide an opportunity for Young Liberals to socialise, network and campaign on a local level.[14] There are over 30 active Branches across Great Britain including the Cambridge University Liberal Association and Oxford Students Liberal Association[14]
Liberal Democrat Youth and Students (LDYS) was created in 1993 from the merger of the Student Liberal Democrats and the Young Liberal Democrats of England who had shared many resources in the run-up. The merger talks were overseen by a committee which included Sarah Gurling. LDYS reorganised into a federal structure in 2000 and then admitted Scottish Young Liberal Democrats as its Scottish federal unit in 2002—forming a single Britain-wide organisation for the first time since the combined ULS-NLYL committees of the 1970s.
Spring 2008 saw LDYS renamed as Liberal Youth, at an event hosted by the Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg.[15] It was then later renamed The Young Liberals in 2016, the organisation has established a 'Liberal Youth Tax' where it asks older members who mistakenly refer to YL as the Liberal Youth to donate to the organisation [16]
The federal Conference is the sovereign body of the Young Liberals and has power to determine policy and direction. The federal Young Liberals usually hosts two conferences a year, a conference in the Winter and a training weekend known as 'Activate' in the Summer, which also acts as the constitutionally mandated Annual General Meeting. At conferences policy motions which shape YL policy and amendments to the organisations constitution are debated, alongside training and speaker sessions.[citation needed]
In addition, during each conference there is an Executive Scrutiny session, whereby members of the executive submit reports to conference on their activities and actions in their job. After each report motions on officers are debated, wherein any member can submit a Motion of commendation, Motion of censure or Motion of no confidence in an officer. Motions of commendation and censure are non-binding opinions of conference passed by a simple majority, expressing either positive or negative opinion on the actions of an officer. Motions of no confidence are binding motions which if passed have the effect of removing an officer from their position and require a two thirds majority in order to pass.[citation needed]
All Conferences following Manchester 2021, the first in person conference following the COVID-19 pandemic, are held as hybrid conferences. Hybrid conferences allow members to join in debates via Confera, an in-house developed and bespoke software package (and mobile app) which allows hybrid participation and voting in democratic events.[citation needed]
Winter Conference was due to be held in-person but was moved online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Summer Conference first conference to be a hybrid conference and allow attendance online and in person. All subsequent conferences have been hybrid.
In addition to the two ordinary Conferences, the Young Liberals may also hold additional "Special Conferences". The Special Conferences require a requisition submitted to the Young Liberals Federal Executive signed by 40 full members, including at least 4 members of each State Organisation. The Special Conferences debates business specified in the requisition, although additional business may be taken at the discretion of the Executive.[citation needed]
The threshold of a Special Conference used to be significantly higher, standing at 200 members, however with the success of Online Conferences it was lowered as they could be held online with ease.[citation needed]
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