Two young parliamentarians are heading to London this weekend to tour Westminster and attend a reception with the Queen.

Christopher Douglas, 18, and 16-year-old Jeelise Allen will be in England for the annual Commonwealth Day celebrations on Monday at the invitation of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, of which Bermuda is a member.

The pair sits in the Island's Youth Parliament, which has about 25 members aged 14 to 18 and meets every Wednesday at the House of Assembly to debate important issues.

They were chosen by the Youth Parliament's coaches to go on the visit and will be accompanied by coach Dawn Broadbent.

Bermuda College student Christopher and Jeelise, a pupil at the Berkeley Institute, will tour the Houses of Parliament in London, meet MPs and attend the Commonwealth Secretary-General's reception in the presence of the Queen.

The day will also see them learn about other democracies and take part in a programme on the theme of this year's Commonwealth Day: The Environment — Our Future.

Shernette Wolffe, Clerk to the Legislature in Bermuda, said the idea was for them to get a feel for the issues in other parliaments and the role of MPs and clerks. "We have some very sharp young parliamentarians," she said.

Youth Parliament advisor Lisa DeSilva, a teacher at CedarBridge Academy, said: "It will definitely be positive for the students.

"It will be great for them to interact with students from other cultures and other parts of the world and to know what we are all connected through the Commonwealth.

"They'll get to find out what their youth parliaments do and hopefully it will generate ideas for us."