United Kingdom

GE Ambassador to the United Kindgom

The current GE ambassador to the United Kingdom is Vasilis A. Repakis. He was born on the 16th March 1990. He finished his secondary education in Greece. Moved in London in 2005 where he started to get actively involved in various activities that promoted youth participation at all levels. He graduated from “The Greek Embassy’s in London School” in 2008. He took twice part as speaker to the European Youth Parliament regional forum in the Foreign and Commonwealth office in London (2006 & 2007). He also represented the Greek Embassy’s in London Secondary School in various assemblies. He was twice elected Secretary General of his School’s Student Union (2006-2007 & 2007- 2008). He is actively involved in his local community by being volunteer Emergency Responder for the British Red Cross, and he recently joined the West Midlands Police Force as volunteer Special Constable. Vasilis studies Political Science with International Relations and French at Aston University in Birmingham. He speaks Greek, English, French, Albanian and Latin.

Event organised by Vassilis Repakis with the Birmingham Model UK society. Read More

The GE Ambassador in the UK Vasilios Repakis, within the provisions of the UK national strategy is recruiting regional assistants in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The regional assistants will will keep Vasilios updated monthly on events taking place in their constituency and they will establish contacts with people from their local and wider community. A meeting will be organised twice a year for all the ambassadors to share their experiences, to establish a common policy/strategy  and to address many more exciting things that the GE community has to offer.  For more information about this exciting role and if you wish to apply please send an e-mail to repakisv@aston.ac.uk stating:

 Name/Surname

 Age:

 E-mail address:

 Any relevant experience you have, or active involvement which you think is relevant to the role.

 If you do have a CV please do not hesitate to forward it as well

What’s up in the UK?

• Europe DNA ruling resonates in UK

The European Court of Human Rights has spoken with a strong and clear voice – retaining indefinitely the DNA and fingerprint records of unconvicted suspects is unlawful.
The 17 judges of Strasbourg’s Grand Chamber were unanimous in their ruling, and they emphasised that the government must follow it – because on this issue it does not have much “margin of appreciation” or leeway.
The court said the UK was the only one of the 47 members of the Council of Europe to permit the “systematic and indefinite” retention of DNA samples and profiles from people who have been acquitted, though within the UK the arrangements apply only to suspects in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
However, the court signalled that the government should consider following Scotland’s example.
The position there, said the judges, was of “particular significance”.
Source: BBC

• Eurobarometer: Young people and science

The latest survey from the Eurobarometer shows that young Europeans, between 15 and 25 years old, have mixed attitudes towards science and technology (S&T). On the one hand, they have positive feelings about S&T, with 82% agreeing that it brings more benefits than harm. On the other hand, more than half of the young people interviewed said they were not themselves thinking about studying in science or engineering. In New Member States, young people were slightly more open to scientific studies.
EU young people are mostly interested in news related to culture and entertainment (nine out of ten). Young men are more likely to be interested in news about science and technology (75% versus 59% of women).
The report is available online at: http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/index_en.htm

• EU vote on working week opt-out

A key vote in the European Parliament later could see an end to Britain’s opt-out of European laws limiting the working week to 48 hours.
Labour MEPs may vote to end the opt-out against the wishes of Prime Minister Gordon Brown who wants to keep it.
The European Commission has said the opt-out should stay arguing it is now used by at least 14 other countries.
Thousands of trade union members marched on the European Parliament to urge an end to the opt-out.
And leaders of the UK’s biggest union, Unite, urged British MEPs to “stop the UK’s long hours culture”.
Source: BBC

Interesting links selected by our national ambassador:

About Studies:

Youthinformation.com

Information and advice on a range of matters, including education, employment and training, the environment, family and relationships, health, housing, justice, money, and sport and leisure. Provided by the National Youth Agency.
http://www.youthinformation.com [EN]

British Council – Education information sheets

You can download these information sheets, which provide practical advice on all areas of studying in the UK. They cover types of courses, choosing the right course for you, living and studying in the UK, and information by academic subject area.

http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-education-information-sheets.htm [EN]

Learndirect

If you want to gain a new skill or qualification but don’t know where to start, search this database. Whatever you fancy learning, whatever level you want to study at, there’s a course out there for you. Go find it!

http://www.learndirect.co.uk [EN][CY]

European Citizenship

Community X Change, European Citizens Panel: www.citizenspanel.eu

Legal Advices

Adviceguide

Online advice on your rights (including civil rights and immigration), consumer affairs, family issues and money matters. You can select information for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. http://www.adviceguide.org.uk

Advice guide for the migrants coming in the UK

http://www.migrantgateway.eu/. In fact, this “migrant gateway” is part of a bigger project called “Advice for Life”: http://www.afl.org.uk/

Community Legal Service

If you need help with a legal problem, try this site. Find a lawyer, call the free helpline for advice, or have a look at the online advice. Information applies to England and Wales, but there are links to Scottish Legal Aid Board and Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission as well.
http://www.clsdirect.org.uk

General

Connexions

If you need advice on money, housing, studying, careers, getting active, health or relationships, then this site’s a good place to start. If you live in England, you can also get in touch with a Personal Adviser in your local area who will be able to help you further.
http://www.connexions-direct.com [EN]

UK in brief:

Area	244,820 sq km
Capital	London
Language	English
Population	60,943,912 (July 2008 est.)
Population growth rate	0.276% (2008 est.)
Net migration rate	2.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Independence	The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted in 1927
GDP	per capita – $35,100 (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	5.4% (2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	14% (2006 est.)