|
16 and 17 year olds will be allowed to vote by the time of the next general election. A good thing for democracy surely?
|
Only if they vote the same way as you.
Otherwise they're too young.
|
>> 16 and 17 year olds will be allowed to vote by the time of the
>> next general election. A good thing for democracy surely?
No
|
I've a sixteen-year-old grandson, I wouldn't trust him to know what day of the week it is, let alone vote. He certainly knows the scores for his (current) favourite football team, going back years.
My daughters had no clue about politics at that age also, apart from what they'd been indoctrinated at school. That changed when they went to uni (further indoctrination) and then into the real world.
|
|
MY 8 and 10 year old granddaughters are good democratic socialists. I think they should have one vote between them.
|
Just adds to the mess that in this country defines "adult".
Some things you absolutely cannot do age 16 - drive a car (17), buy alcohol (18), tobacco (18), be an MP (18), purchase a firearm (18 - some exceptions), get their own credit card (18) etc
Parental responsibility persists until the "child" is 18.
This leaves some things at age 16 which require parental agreement - marriage, joining armed forces, get a mortgage etc.
Whether a 16 year old has the maturity, knowledge and judgement to vote is a matter of opinion.
But judged against the other age related inconsistencies and absurdities is has all the characteristic of a political stunt not a thought out proposition.
|
|
Most countries have 18 as the voting age. We are joining a tiny club of a half dozen or so who have it at 16. It means that someone who is currently 12 will be able to vote at the likely next election date. I know you could argue this with any age (14 year olds in the case of the existing 18 rule) but it gave me a jolt.
|
>> Some things you absolutely cannot do age 16 - drive a car (17), buy alcohol
>> (18), tobacco (18), be an MP (18), purchase a firearm (18 - some exceptions), get
>> their own credit card (18) etc
>> This leaves some things at age 16 which require parental agreement - marriage, joining armed
>> forces, get a mortgage etc.
I'm struggling to see why a difference between buying alcohol or a firearm and voting cannot be rationality justified.
I don't think marriage at 16 with parent's consent is any longer possible. I think a 16yo can take a driving test and drive a Motability car.
Both my kids would have been ok to vote at 16. All the arguments against are exactly thr same ones that were used years ago when majority was reduced to 18.
|
>> I'm struggling to see why a difference between buying alcohol or a firearm and voting
>> cannot be rationality justified.
The first two require responsibility and judgement, voting does not?
|
"I'm struggling to see why a difference between buying alcohol or a firearm and voting
cannot be rationality justified.
The first two require responsibility and judgement, voting does not?"
There is a clear difference.
All require responsibility and judgement, but the potential fall-out from a lapse of judgement concerning alcohol or a firearm is far greater than voting for the Monster Raving Loony Party.
|
>> All require responsibility and judgement, but the potential fall-out from a lapse of judgement concerning
>> alcohol or a firearm is far greater than voting for the Monster Raving Loony Party.
I'm not so sure, look what's happened in America.
|
I think trying to compare the age of consent for one thing to another in the uk is pretty pointless. There's all sorts of oddities that don't always make much sense.
I think the comparisons cloud the issue, Scotland have voting this low. That said it's still pretty unusual to lower it to 16.
|
One other thought has just come to mind. I recently read this in the telegraph www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/04/30/small-boat-migrant-spared-jail-punching-female-police-offic/
The offender aged 20 assaulted a police officer was told his brain was "not yet formed" it's not clear whether he got a lesser sentence as a young offender than he otherwise would.
which led to the thought should someone whose brain is not yet formed be allowed to vote, planning and decision-making being one of the last areas to mature?
Ones brain is said not to be fully formed until around the age of 25 so therefore should under 25s be allowed to vote?
Lowering the voting age is a form of gerrymandering in my opinion.
BTW I the law changed so at under 18 years of age you cannot marry even with parental permission. The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022, which came into effect on February 27, 2023. This means that anyone under 18 in England and Wales cannot legally marry, regardless of parental consent!
|
Are those that are arguing against dropping the age, really wanting to go down the road of “they don’t know what they are doing” ?
Are we going to apply the same sanity check process to the rest of the voting population?
|
Angela Rayner has justified dropping the voting age to 16 by saying. "I had my son at 16"
PMSL
|
>> Are those that are arguing against dropping the age, really wanting to go down the
>> road of “they don’t know what they are doing” ?
Indeed we do, with a fair degree of justification
>> Are we going to apply the same sanity check process to the rest of the
>> voting population?
Oh that we could.
|
I don't think it will really work as gerrymandering.
It's true that 41% of 18-24's voted Labour last time but it's as easy to interpret that as a protest vote as it is a 'left wing' one.
The lads in particular I can imagine voting Reform. My girls are a bit young for survey purposes but I think they'd vote green!
|
|
As an Aside, was that your blue MX5 outside the village shop yesterday?
|
If it was the MK4 with the roof down, yes. There is a purply blue MK2 that parks there all the time at the moment.
I think I went for the paper around 9.30.
|
At 16 all I was interested in was the other sex, arcade machines and mopeds.
To be honest I didn't know my a rse from my elbow. Still don't.
|
>> At 16 all I was interested in was the other sex, arcade machines and mopeds.
>>
>>
>>
The sixteen year olds we had delivering papers in the shop showed zero interest in politics.
|
Voting age - Robin O'Reliant
