The United Kingdom is lowering the voting age from 18 to 16 before the next national elections – a move which opposition figures decry as a way to sway the electorate to benefit the left.
The U.K. government, controlled by the Labour Party, announced Thursday that 16- and 17-year-olds will be given the right to vote as part of other new "seismic changes." Other election reforms include extending voter ID to bank cards, issuing new rules meant to "guard against foreign political interference and abuse of campaigners," and tightening laws restricting foreign donations to British political parties.
In an accompanying policy paper included in the announcement, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said that "declining trust in our institutions and democracy itself has become critical, but it is the responsibility of government to turn this around and renew our democracy, just as generations have done before us."
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"I think it's really important that 16- and 17-year-olds have the vote because they're old enough to go out to work, they're old enough to pay taxes, so to pay in. And I think if you pay in, you should have the opportunity to say what you want your money spent on, which way the government should go," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters on Thursday. "I'm really pleased that we're able to bring more young people into our democracy."
"Young people already contribute to society by working, paying taxes and serving in the military. It's only right they can have a say on the issues that affect them," Rayner wrote on X. The deputy prime minister also elaborated in a statement, adding: "We cannot take our democracy for granted, and by protecting our elections from abuse and boosting participation we will strengthen the foundations of our society for the future."
The minimum age of service in the British Armed Forces is 16, but those under 18 need written consent from a parent or guardian and may not be deployed to combat zones.
British opposition politicians accused the Labour Party of trying to manipulate the electorate in their favor by lowering the voting age.
"Why does this government think a 16‑year‑old can vote but not be allowed to buy a lottery ticket or an alcoholic drink, marry or go to war, or even stand in the elections they’re voting?" Member of Parliament (MP) Paul Holmes, a conservative, said in the House of Commons on Thursday. "Isn’t the government’s position on the age of maturity just hopelessly confused?"
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Holmes accused Labour of "governing by press release" and questioned whether allowing bank cards – which do not include photographs – as a form of voter ID will undermine security measures at the ballot box.
Nigel Farage, leader of the right-wing Reform UK Party, said giving 16- and 17-year-olds the right to vote "is an attempt to rig the political system."
"The problem with this is, not only do half of youngsters not want the vote, but they have to stay at school now until they're 18," Farage said in a video shared to X. "The educational establishment is full of left-wing prejudice, is full of anti-reform bias, and frankly, if 16 to 18 year olds at school are going to be able to vote, we're going to have to make sure that our education system is teaching kids to make their own minds up and not indoctrinating them."
The change still requires parliamentary approval but was a campaign promise by the Labour Party, which won last year's general election and holds majority control. The next general election is in 2029.
Rayner noted that 16- and 17-year-olds can already vote in Scotland and Wales in local elections and country-level parliamentary elections. The minimum voting age for local elections in England and Northern Ireland is 18.
In an opinion piece in the British newspaper "The Times," Rayner, who was a single mother at the age of 16, said the change makes 1.6 million 16- and 17-year-olds eligible to vote in the United Kingdom, which has a population of roughly 68 million.
"This is about fairness and transparency and giving the young a stake in our country’s future, bringing them into our communities, not excluding them," Rayner wrote. "It’s about delivering on our manifesto to commitment to secure votes at 16. But it’s also about strengthening our electoral system so that it is fit for the 21st century — because we cannot take our democracy for granted."
