A MEMBER of Darlington's Youth Assembly has been chosen to represent the country at a European youth conference.

James Gilbey, 18, a peer mentor at Darlington Borough Council, was selected as one of two young people to represent the country at the five-day European Youth Event on the Greek island of Crete. He flies to the island on Friday.

The event will look at how to get young people more involved in the decision-making processes of national and European governments. Young conference delegates will be asked for their views on a report being put together by the European Commission, which will highlight how to inform youngsters and get them to participate in the legislative process.

Mr Gilbey was selected after putting his name forward in the Darlington Youth Assembly.

He said: "I'm a little nervous but I'm really looking forward to the event and to putting my views across. The fact I'm there as a representative for England is really exciting. It just shows how the Darlington Youth Assembly has really taken off, and how it is involved with agencies locally and nationally.