Nigel speaks:

https://x.com/Nigel_Farage/status/1945837816727908842

At 16, you won't be paying taxes, you can't die for your country, or marry without parental consent, so why should you get to vote?

God forbid young people have a say in the future they’re expected to live in, especially when we’ve got boomers voting based on whatever GB News fearmongered about that morning.

But sure, keep pretending 16-year-olds aren’t mature enough

16 year olds who leave school to do apprenticeships or paid-for training will be paying tax and so there will be 16 and 17 year olds who do pay tax who currently cannot vote.

I am curious, if not paying tax or not dying for your country is a reason to not be able to vote, do you extend that to all ages? I personally don't agree.

Also not sure what marriage has to do with it.

Age doesn't define someones ability to choose wisely when voting and going by recent polls less than 50% of 16-17 year olds are interested in voting, so there is that too. Lowering the age doesn't necessarily lead to engagement

Let’s not pretend older voters are the gold standard of wisdom and political engagement.

I don't think labour have begun to think of the knock on effects. Old enough to vote, old enough to buy booze. Old enough to drive, old enough to stand as an MP and as Livia pointed out, being treated as an adult in the courts

you are an older voter

100% of 16 year olds would view you as a pensioner nearing death

:joker:

You’re far older than I am so you’d be worm food.

they see us both the same sunshine

:douf:

Age doesn’t automatically grant wisdom, if it did, we wouldn’t have boomers proudly voting for parties that want to torch public services and then complain about the NHS being understaffed.

So yeah, I trust some 16-year-olds more than I trust a Facebook uncle with a Union Jack profile pic and a love for conspiracy theories.

This I agree with :laugh: I keep seeing videos of even 20 year olds saying anyone born in the 90s they consider old. :angel:

Nope, they don't pay enough to reach the tax threshold.

Was mostly sarcasm, as people tend to reel off a list of things that 16 year olds "can" do in order to justify giving them the vote.

Alex Phillips @ThatAlexWoman

Dear Labour

16 year olds don't want to vote

They just want a country to grow up in to. One they can call their own.

Perhaps try leaving them that instead? Before using them as pawns to keep your Britain-destroying wrecking ball of a sh*t show government in power.

They are too young to know how toxic you are. But when they are 40 and standing in a dumpster fire of a land where they have become the minority, they will wish you had never existed.

Love,

Britain

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images...5v_200x200.jpg

The minimum wage for most apprenticeships is £7.55 which based on a full time hours would be just shy of 15k.

The starting salary I believe for a 16 year old in the Army is over 15k.

Tax threshold is 12.5k

Unless I am mistaken but I'm pretty sure the above it correct.

okay I stand corrected on that point, I knew they paid a pittance but I thought it was more of a pittance :laugh:

Polls today suggest 16 year olds are split on wanting to vote

of those that do

33 per cent would vote Labour
20 per cent Reform
and the remainder Green

You must be getting up there. You considered yourself a "young person" when I joined here fifteen years ago. To a teenager you're an old guy.

Eh, this is dumb imo. Most 16 year olds aren’t mature enough/haven’t experienced real life working standards and will probably just vote for what their friends (and teachers…) tell them to

18 should be the age you can vote/drink/smoke/join army/pay taxes etc etc

I'd have thought it would be split between Reform and the Greens tbh - what do Labour have to offer?

If they enjoy freezing old people to death, and taking away peoples disabled benefits they would vote Labour?

I read the remainder was between Green (18%), Lib Dem(13%) and Con (10%) I guess the remaining small percentage is a ‘Don’t Know’

that would make more sense, I only heard the first 3

You know, child actors pay tax. Maybe we should give them the vote.