As a country we have collectively agreed that 18 is when you become an adult.
Reaching adulthood comes with a range of rights, and there are many things, which for good reason, we only let people do after they turn 18.
Yet this Labour government is intent on pushing ahead with legislation to allow 16-year-olds to vote.
It claims lowering the voting age is critical to engaging young people in democracy, empowering them to participate in society and affect change both locally and nationally.
But I’ve had many conversations with young people across the constituency when I’ve visited schools and local youth groups who tell me they feel unprepared for the responsibility of voting and believe the age should remain at 18.
And studies have shown in Scotland – where the voting age was lowered to 16 in 2015 – that despite an initial boost in teenagers voting, it was short lived and did not translate into wider political participation.
A report from civil servants published just a few week ago, also said lowering the voting age “should not be framed instrumentally around the long-term impact of higher initial turnout rates. Lowering the voting age needs to be justified using other arguments.”
I struggle to see what arguments there are! The age of adulthood and civic responsibility should remain at 18, and that is the point I made repeatedly when Parliament debated the Representation of the People Bill last week.
At 16 a person cannot vape, cannot get a tattoo or buy a lottery ticket. They cannot buy alcohol, cannot get a mortgage, cannot leave education and are unable to stand for election in Parliament if they so wish. Since 2023, 16 and 17 year olds are no longer allowed to marry (with parental consent) but must be 18, and under 18s are also going to face restrictions on social media use under plans from Labour.
How on earth can a person be deemed mature enough to vote yet not responsible enough to do any of the above.
Where do we draw the line? What is next? Are we going to fill juries with 16-year-olds, or send 16-year-olds to the frontline in war zones – of course we aren’t – because however mature someone may be at 16, they are still a child. There is a very clear distinction between children and adults in almost every other area of law for a reason.
No one should be under any illusion as to why Labour is so keen on allowing 1.7 million 16- and 17-year-olds to vote. It is bare-faced ballot box fixing, a policy to keep Labour in power for a generation.
