5.10 Current debates and reforms
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Forthcoming policy developments
In December 2022, the new government presented its platform. On the platform, the government declares that the guiding principle in its children and youth policy is well-being, empowerment and good spirits (livsmod). The government intends to enhance robustness and self-confidence among young people. The Danish youth is skilled, fantastic and dedicated, and the government wishes to use all these competencies in society. Young people must understand the value of their unique contribution and enter into communities that are the base of society.
The government will set up a commission to submit recommendations regarding children and young people’s well-being and how to prevent failure to thrive and vulnerability. Amo
Ongoing debates
Every year, the Danish Youth Council (DUF) conducts a democracy survey.
The 2022 analysis concludes that young people are politically active. However, half of the respondents have low democratic self-confidence, which means that they do not feel they have anything to bring to a discussion or they don’t easily understand political discussions.
Climate change is still a top priority among Danish youth. Lastly, the survey shows that two out of three young people feel that online debates are dominated by extreme attitudes. The tone of online debates discourages young people from participating.
There is an ongoing debate on the increase in the number of youth councils and panels. The concern among young people is that the inclusion of young people can be categorised as youth-washing, where young people participate but don’t have a real influence on decisions regarding them or society. Thus, young people are merely a trophy to indicate how modern and forward-looking organisations or municipalities are.