Young Liberals (UK)


Young Liberals is the youth and student organisation of the UK Liberal Democrats. Membership is automatic for members of the Liberal Democrats aged under 26, and opt-in for those aged 26–30. It organises a number of fringe events at the Liberal Democrat Federal 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.
Social liberalism, economic liberalism, social justice, internationalism and pro-Europeanism are important components of the group's political philosophy.
The constitution of the Liberal Democrats requires an affiliated youth and student wing. Accordingly, Young Liberals is a Specified Associated Organisation of the party. It is granted voting rights on various Liberal Democrat committees, such as the Party's Federal Board.
Young Liberals is affiliated to both the International Federation of Liberal and Radical Youth and European Liberal Youth. Its predecessors include the National League of Young Liberals, founded in 1903 and the Union of Liberal Students, founded in 1920.

Organisation and Structure

Federal organisation

Young Liberals is the main party, organised in Great Britain on a federal basis, compromising of Welsh Young Liberals in Wales, Scottish Young Liberals in Scotland and English Young Liberals in England. The Convenor of each of these groups organises the regional activity of Young Liberals.

Executive

The federal organisation of Young Liberals organises liaisons with Liberal Democrats and affiliated organisations. The Federal Executive operates alongside committees for Conferences, Policy and International affairs. These committees, barring ex officio members such as representatives from state organisations and delegates from the executive, are elected by the Young Liberals membership via an all-member ballot, terms beginning on 1 November and are responsible to Conference. The English, Scottish and Welsh representatives are elected by the memberships of the state organisations - English Young Liberals, Scottish Young Liberals and Welsh Young Liberals.
RoleName
ChairTara Copeland
Vice ChairCharlie Murphy
Finance OfficerFinn Conway
Communications OfficerDan Schmeising
Campaigns OfficerVacant
Membership Development OfficerAlexander Howarth
Events OfficerJoshan Parmar
Policy OfficerJames Bliss
International OfficerCatriona McDougall
Accessibility, Diversity and Standards OfficerKatharine Macy
BAME OfficerVacant
Non-Portfolio OfficerGuy Benson
English Young Liberals ChairJack Worrall
Welsh Young Liberals ChairChloe Hutchinson
Scottish Young Liberals ChairAndrew Reynolds
Scottish Young Liberals Chair-

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.
RoleName
Honorary PresidentTessa Munt
Honorary Vice-PresidentNick Da Costa
Honorary Vice-PresidentElaine Bagshaw
Honorary Vice-PresidentScott Emery
Honorary Vice-PresidentJames Cox
Honorary Vice-PresidentStuart Wheatcroft
Honorary Vice-PresidentCharley Hasted

Committees

In addition to the Executive, there are six committees which are responsible for the administration and implementation of its area, working alongside the executive. Committees are chaired by the Officer that is responsible for that area, for example the Policy Officer chairs the Policy Committee, and the other members of the committee are made up of members elected by the membership alongside the Officers and, with the exception of the International Committee and Diversity Committee, representatives from each of the three state organisations.

Campaigns Committee

Conference Committee

Policy Committee

International Congress Delegates Committee

Communications Committee

Diversity Committee

Branches

Outside of universities, Young Liberals eschews a formal, hierarchical branch structure, instead encouraging members to organise themselves and to use their local Liberal Democrat Party for financial affairs. Active members communicate with their local Youth Chair, who liaises with the parent party's representatives and with the federal Young Liberals executive. In this way the activities of young and student members remain formally independent from but closely engaged with the Liberal Democrats.
Young Liberals has had an active branch in Northern Ireland since 2010, under the name of Liberal Youth Northern Ireland, which operates as the youth branch of the Northern Ireland Liberal Democrats. Since 2014 it has become an official branch of Young Liberals, though for administrative purposes it is a branch of the English Young Liberals rather than a separate state branch. Liberal Youth Northern Ireland maintains a close working relationship with Alliance Youth, the youth wing of the Alliance Party.

Conferences

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.
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.

Conference Locations

History

Liberal Democrat mergers

The organisation was formerly known as Liberal Democrat Youth and Students. Spring 2008 saw LDYS renamed as Liberal Youth, at an event hosted by the Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg. Liberal Youth is the successor organisation to all the youth and student wings of the Liberal Democrats, the Liberal Party and the Social Democratic Party, including the Union of Liberal Students, the National League of Young Liberals,, the Young Social Democrats and Students for Social Democracy.
The Liberal Party and the SDP each had separate student and youth wings until their merger in 1988; these merged in England to form the Student Liberal Democrats and the Young Liberal Democrats of England. In Scotland, there was a separate Scottish Young Liberal Democrats. Liberal Democrat Youth and Students was itself created in 1993 from a 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, who later married the late Charles Kennedy. 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 GB-wide organisation for the first time since the combined ULS-NLYL committees of the 1970s.

List of former Chairs

NameTerm in OfficeNotes
Young LiberalsTara Copeland2019 - Present
Young LiberalsCallum James Littlemore2018 - 2019Co-Chairs;
Young LiberalsDan Schmeising2018 - 2019Co-Chairs;
Young LiberalsFinn Conway2018Elected on 27 July following resignation of previous chair.
Young LiberalsThomas Gravatt 2018Acting Chair
Young LiberalsThomas Gravatt--
Young LiberalsCharlie Kingsbury2016 - 2017
Liberal YouthCharlie Kingsbury
Michael Chappell		2015 - 2016Co-Chairs
Liberal YouthAlex Harding-Last2014 - 2015
Liberal YouthSarah Harding2013 - 2014
Liberal YouthSam Fisk2013Chair; Elected following Tom Wood's resignation.
Liberal YouthKavya Kaushik2013Chair; Elected following Tom Wood's resignation.
Liberal YouthTom Wood2011 - 2013Resigned part way through second term
Liberal YouthMartin Shapland2010 - 2011
Liberal YouthElaine Bagshaw2008 - 2010Resigned part way through second term
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Mark Gettleson2006 - 2008
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Gez Smith2005 - 2006
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Chris Lomax2004 - 2005
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Brian Robson2003 - 2004
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Alison Goldsworthy2002 - 2003
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Miranda Piercy2000 - 2002
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Geoff Payne1999–2000
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Polly Martin1998–1999
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Hywel Morgan1997–1998
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Ruth Berry1996–1997
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Tim Prater1995–1996
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Phil Jones1995
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Alex Wilcock1994–1995
Liberal Democrat
Youth and Students		Kiron Reid1993–1994