Mayor's speech to the Annual General Meeting on 1 April 2009

A summary of the speech by Sir Steve Bullock to Lewisham Council. The full speech is available in the pdf at the bottom of the page.

They are the future and we must not fail them.

Young people were at the heart of the speech that Mayor of Lewisham Sir Steve Bullock gave to the annual general meeting of Lewisham Council on 1 April 2009.

In a speech that addressed a wide range of issues relating to young people, Sir Steve said: “Now, more than ever, we must celebrate their successes, offer them opportunities and intervene to help those in trouble.”

The Mayor also talked of his concern that, unless action is taken now to address the impact of the economic downturn, we could witness the creation of a “lost generation” of young people unable to find work and without the opportunity to develop the skills they need to succeed in the future.

Among the invited guests at the annual meeting were the parents of Jimmy Mizen, Barry and Margaret. They heard Steve talk about how Jimmy’s tragic death had affected the community deeply.

Sir Steve spoke about the summit he called in December 2008, which brought together, young people and those who work with them, to examine what they could do together to help and support those young people at risk of becoming involved in violence, as well as those threatened by it.

The summit delivered a wide range of recommendations and Sir Steve said he would be championing many of them in the coming year. “The thing that became most clear to me that day was the interrelated nature of so many issues we face,” Sir Steve said. “There is a cycle of abuse which blights the lives of some of our fellow citizens. We have to recognise that cycle and work together to break it at every opportunity.”

Looking to the coming year Sir Steve highlighted the actions he will be taking to help local people and their families affected by the recession. These include the creation of new apprenticeships, support for businesses and advice for residents among other things.

Read the full text of Sir Steve’s speech below.