Josh Shaw and Chelsea Burgess-Hannon were among 60 students who 'took over' the Legislative Council last week

Josh Shaw and Chelsea Burgess-Hannon were among 60 students who 'took over' the Legislative Council for a four-day Sitting Week (11-14 July) in the Parliament of NSW, as part of the year-long youth leadership and engagement program.

Students passed nine important committee reports across a range of portfolios including Aboriginal Affairs, Education, Women's Affairs and Inclusion and Diversity.

The group made nearly 100 recommendations, among them an 11.5 per cent wage rise for teachers, greater rights for gig workers, lowering the minimum full-time work age to 16 and reducing the cost of car registration for a young tradespeople by 60 per cent

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First time youth parliamentarian and Mater Dei Catholic College student Josh Shaw landed the role of Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change.

He was satisfied that their committee report passed without amendments in the chamber.

"I wrote areas of the report in relation to creating training programs for fossil fuel workers, so I thought that was a really big issue to ensure continued employment as renewable energy comes into the market."

"This might sound a bit cliched, but I think the experience was life changing," Mr Shaw said.

Mr Shaw also came away with the Taskie Award for Star Player of the week.

Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Upper House, Chelsea Burgess Hannon, said it was fantastic to see the 2022 cohort face-to-face after last year's Youth Parliament was delivered virtually because of the pandemic.

"It's made me more grateful of these experiences face-to-face, nothing beats having the experience in person."

Participants will return to Parliament House on Monday September 26 to officially present the nine reports to respective Minister's portfolios.

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