‘At 16, you cannot buy a pint, rent a flat, get a tattoo, join a jury, or even leave education’
16 year-olds-will gain the right to vote (Image: Getty)
Labour’s plan to give 16- and 17-year-olds the vote isn’t a bold act of democratic renewal. It’s a cynical attempt to rig the system in their favour. Let’s call it what it is: gerrymandering in a school uniform. At 16, you cannot buy a pint, rent a flat, get a tattoo, join a jury, or even leave education. Just last year, the same Labour MPs who now champion “votes at 16” voted to raise the legal age of marriage from 16 to 18, rightly recognising that adult responsibilities require adult maturity.
Why, then, should the solemn act of choosing our national government be any different? This isn’t about enfranchising a new generation. It’s about boosting Labour’s electoral prospects.
Fewer than one in five 16- and 17-year-olds say they’d definitely vote – and nearly half told Merlin Strategy they don’t think they should be allowed to. The majority of the public agrees.
According to recent data from More in Common, 48% of voters oppose lowering the voting age, compared to just 27% who support it. The older you are – and arguably, the more life experience you bring to the ballot box – the stronger your opposition.
The right to vote carries weight. It reflects a maturity of judgement and a grasp of consequence. Yet this Government would hand that right to young people who can’t be legally employed full-time without being in training. In what world is someone mature enough to vote for a Prime Minister but not old enough to play the National Lottery?
Sir Simon Clarke (Image: Getty)
Let’s be frank. This policy won’t build a single new home, ease the tax burden, or fix the NHS. But it will entrench a damaging idea: that voting is something to be wielded by those with the loudest voices, not the most experience. It risks cheapening the franchise, not strengthening it.
Organisations like Onward and Conservative YIMBY have hit the nail on the head. If we really want to help young people, let’s build homes they can afford. Let’s fix the root causes of disillusionment – not pander to it with performative reform.
A vote at 16 is not a right of passage. It’s a political tool dressed up as progress. And the public sees through it.
