SDLP Youth Chairman Gary McKeown has welcomed a move by Gap Clothing to remove from a sale a product which was made using child labour, but has criticised the fact that the incident could have been allowed to happen.

Mr McKeown said: “It is certainly a positive move by Gap to stop selling a product which it has been shown was made using child labour in India. However, this situation should never have been allowed to come about in the first place. It is extremely important that western retailers ensure that the goods that they are selling are ethically produced.

“We wouldn’t let children make clothes instead of going to school in Europe, so we shouldn’t stand by and let it happen elsewhere in the world, especially when the clothes we are wearing could have been made in this way.

“It is repulsive to think that major corporations could be lining their pockets through the misery of children in the developing world.”

Mr McKeown concluded: “SDLP Youth is currently running its ‘Think Before You Buy’ campaign which is urging shoppers to make sure that the clothes they are buying are not made through slave or child labour. Incidents like this prove how important it is to keep the focus on retailers to make sure that they are not exploiting people less fortunate than ourselves.”

ENDS

SDLP Youth has hit out at comments made by Employment and Learning Minister Reg Empey regarding student loans.

SDLP Youth Chairman Gary McKeown said: “Reg Empey claims ‘there is no interest on the student loan… there is an inflationary charge’- this is just playing with words. The fact is that each month interest is charged on the loan and will continue to be charged until it is fully repaid. Calling it an ‘inflationary charge’ does not alter this fact.

“Perhaps Reg should look at the Student Loans website where students are advised that ‘The amount to be paid back will depend on the amount borrowed plus the interest charged.’

“The current rate of interest on student loans is 4.8 percent, the highest it has been for 15 years. This is approaching the rates offered by high street banks.

“Mr Empey would be better occupied putting his energy into finding a way of scrapping university tuition fees, which would reduce the need for students to take loans in the first place. At the minute, people considering whether to go to university often find themselves having to base their decision on finances rather than their academic ability or career aspirations.

“SDLP Youth sees tuition fees as nothing more than a tax on learning.”

Mr McKeown also criticised Ian Paisley Jr for his comments on how student loans work: “Ian Paisley Junior claims that students ‘know they won’t be paying interest on it [the student loan]’. This confuses the situation. The Minister made the point that students won’t have to start paying back the loan until they earn above a certain amount of money, which is correct, but meanwhile interest in constantly accruing. It is not as if it is ‘interest free’.

“By the time students can afford to start paying back their loan, they’ll usually find the bill is a lot higher than they expected thanks to added interest. So while they may not pay anything until they start earning, the interest is constantly building which they will eventually have to pay off alongside their student loan.

“There is a pressing need for the Assembly to address this issue immediately in order to prevent people turning their backs on a university education because it is just too expensive.”

ENDS

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The comments referred to above were made by Mr Empey and Mr Paisley on BBC Radio Ulster’s ‘Talk Back’ programme on Thursday 4th October 2007.

SDLP Youth have welcomed the move by the PSNI to battle human trafficking.

SDLP Youth Vice-Chair Peter Armstrong said: “This has been a campaign SDLP Youth have been fighting for a long time through our sister party the European Congress of Socialist Youth (ECOSY) and the International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY).

“Human trafficking is a serious issue in many countries of the world and although it may not be the biggest issue in the north of Ireland, it is on the rise.

“While we welcome the move by the PSNI, we would urge our local politicians to take this issue on board and ensure that every possible action is taken to ensure that human trafficking is eliminated”.

SDLP Youth has welcomed today’s rise in the minimum wage, but has criticised the British government for the stratified system involved in its implementation.

SDLP Youth Chairman Gary McKeown said: “The minimum wage is necessary to ensure that the lowest paid workers are protected from exploitation, and today’s rise is to be welcomed. However, we cannot escape the fact that the minimum wage laws designed to protect the most vulnerable workers are also some of the most discriminatory.

“The law states that people under the age of 22 can be paid less for doing the exact same job as someone over that age. For example, in a shop that pays its staff the minimum wage, a 17 year-old will get paid over £2 less per hour than someone over 22 for doing the same work.

“This is the worst form of discrimination- society wouldn’t accept a law if it allowed people to be paid less because of their gender or race, so the same indignation must be displayed at discrimination based on age.

“The British government claims to be committed to equality, and indeed introduced legislation to prevent discrimination on the basis of age, yet its own minimum wage laws produce some of the most discriminatory practices possible.

Mr McKeown concluded: “SDLP Youth is calling for a universal minimum wage for workers, regardless of their age.

“As far as we are concerned, equal work must mean equal pay.”

ENDS

New Minimum Wages:

16- 17 Year Olds- £3.40

18-21 Year Olds- £4.60

Over 22s- £5.52

SDLP Youth has expressed concern that the University of Ulster is having trouble attracting Protestant people to study at its Magee campus in Derry.

SDLP Youth Chairman Gary McKeown said: “It is certainly in no one’s interests to have university campuses with strong religious imbalances. Universities are places of learning, and part of that comes from working side-by-side with people from different religious and ethnic backgrounds. The ‘ghettoisation’ of educational institutions is cause for concern, as it deprives students of the experience of engaging with the rich tapestry of people which normally makes the university experience so fulfilling and beneficial.”

Mr McKeown added: “The silver lining on the cloud is the fact that the situation is not as bad as it used to be- whereas Catholics outnumber Protestants 4:1 at the minute, a decade ago the figure was closer to a 9:1 ratio. Things are clearly moving in the right direction, and efforts must continue to ensure that Magee enjoys a diverse student population.

“Derry is an extremely enjoyable place to study and live as a young person, and hopefully the message will go out that Magee is a campus which welcomes people from all backgrounds.”