Should 16-year-olds vote?

Proposals for consultation by Prime Minister Gordon Brown include whether voting in national elections should be extended to 16-year-olds. The issue of lowering the voting age has re-surfaced in the UK for further investigation now with Austria becoming the first European country to lower its voting age to 16.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• 16-year-old
• Austria
• politics
• vote

[amness1a]

16 should be voting age, im 18 myself. you can join the army at 16, cant chose who is gonna send you where though, you can have kids but cant decide what kind of country they are going to grow up in, and you can work and pay taxes, but you cant have a say on what your tax money is paying for. plus, if under 18s arent clued up on politics enough to vote does anyone really think they will make the effort to go to a polling station and vote for monster raving loony party or whatever?

[MagnaCarta2015]

The Government with enfranchise 16-year olds in the next 5 years.

[yinzjagoffs]

Why is it right that any group of people should have the power to take away the life and property of peaceful people? People the world over think it's ok to vote away the freedom of others. The crazy thing is they have the nerve to call what their doing freedom. Democracy is never freedom, freedom is never Democracy.

[badpanda84]

@UKkid19 LOL I agree I:m 25 and I still donkey vote... ( Actually I think I voted legmiatley last election.. to bad the Australian Sex party will never win)

[surfer53]

You think we've got junkie voters looking for their next big fix now. You add to that a bunch of selfish 16 year olds and you'll have some fun. I wonder what George Carlin would say about this. Western countries already have a problem with entitled voters, and that's what being 16 is all about. They want all the perks without any of the responsibility. You'll have to create a whole knew entitlement program just for the new group of voters. Free cell phones paid for by taxpayers anyone?

[zsupersaiyan]

My college has got a Sixth Form section in it. If those people I see everyday, who play headers and volleys in the corridor, frequently throw dirty trays onto the Year 7 table in the Cafetiria and do under-age drinking will get the vote, then trust ne, this country will be screwed up.

[doglover93mat]

@petrifiedmetal what about if your parents are alcoholics and chain smokers, so being able to vote will give you a say in that.

[MagnaCarta2015]

I think the minimum Voting age in the United Kingdom for all elections, Local, Devolved Parliaments, General Elections, European Parliament Elections and Referendums should be 16.

Many 16 year olds go to work and pay taxes as well as every time they buy something they pay tax, therefore not allowing them to vote is "taxation without representation". The Channel Islands and Isle of Man has already enfranshised 16 year olds.