THREE West Devon schoolgirls are waiting on tenterhooks as the votes are counted in this year?s UK Youth Parliament elections.

Emma Lashbrook, 15, and Eleanor Whitmore, 13, both from Tavistock, and Amy Wilson, 15, from Okehampton, will find out this Saturday who will represent the views of young people in the North and West Devon and Torridge constituency.

Voting took place all of last week in schools and youth centres across the country, as youngsters aged 11 to 18 pledged their support for their chosen candidates who are in the same age bracket.

Elected candidates will become Members of the Youth Parliament (MYPs) for a period of one year commencing on February 1. They do not stand as representatives of political parties.

There are three seats available in Devon, and Emma, Eleanor and Amy are among five youngsters battling it out for the North and West Devon and Torridge seat.

Eleanor, a pupil at Tavistock College, said her priority, if she gets elected, will be to give young people in the area a much needed voice.

?I hope to talk to youngsters between 11 and 18 years old and see what their views are,? she said. ?Then I?ll be able to put their views forward at council meetings.

?It?s really important to let young people have a voice.?

Emma, who also attends the college, said she would push for the rights of disabled youngsters in the constituency.

She said: ?A lot of young disabled people have told me they try to talk to able bodied people but they just don?t listen to them. I want to give them a voice so their views can be heard.

?I also want disabled people to have better access to open places.?

Emma already belongs to Tavistock Youth Council, and is involved in producing a business plan for a new youth cafe in the town.

?I?m not sure about a career in politics, but I would like to be a councillor or a mayor in the future,? she said.

Amy, a pupil at Okehampton College, said she would concentrate on improving public transport in her home town, so that youngsters are not so isolated.

?The bus service isn?t very regular, and a lot of young people in Okehampton who are too young to drive find themselves stranded sometimes,? she said.

Amy is very active in the community as a member of youth council, Okehampton Teens to Twenties (OTT). She is also on her school council, and manages to juggle her GCSE studies with playing in a band and singing in a harmony group.

She said her interest in politics was inspired by her late grandmother.

?My gran was very political and I really admired her,? she explained. ?I like to get involved and give something back to the community.

?But I don?t know if I would like to be a politician.?

Liberal Democrat MP for West Devon and Torridge, John Burnett, said the Youth Parliament was a good way of introducing youngsters to politics.

?It?s an innovative project to inspire younger people to take an interest in politics and constitutional affairs,? he said. ?I would like to congratulate all those people who have been involved in making Youth Parliament a success.?