[Matthew.]

Yes - more teenagers are interested in politics than ever before, and if a 16 year old is allowed to pay tax, leave school, join the Army etc, why shouldn’t they be able to vote as well?

[Livia]

Originally Posted by Matthew.

Yes - more teenagers are interested in politics than ever before, and if a 16 year old is allowed to pay tax, leave school, join the Army etc, why shouldn’t they be able to vote as well?

Because they're not adults until they're 18. As I explained in my post above yours.

[Matthew.]

Originally Posted by Livia

Because they're not adults until they're 18. As I explained in my post above yours.

That is true, but why are they allowed to leave school, join the army, get married etc at 16 but not allowed to vote? All of those are far more responsible adult decisions to make than voting in an election.

The voting age in Scotland was changed to 16 because young people were getting more involved with politics around the time of the independence referendum. Teenagers have become even more interested in UK politics since.

[Oliver_W]

Originally Posted by Matthew.

That is true, but why are they allowed to leave school, join the army, get married etc at 16 but not allowed to vote?

Under 18s can't:
Leave full time education
Engage in combative roles in the military
Get married without parental permission
Earn enough to pay taxes

Originally Posted by Matthew.

All of those are far more responsible adult decisions to make than voting in an election.

Which is why it's not easy for under 18s to do these things

[Oliver_W]

Originally Posted by Matthew.

Yes - more teenagers are interested in politics than ever before, and if a 16 year old is allowed to pay tax, leave school, join the Army etc, why shouldn’t they be able to vote as well?

They're not allowed to leave full time education, under 18s aren't allowed to join "front line" military service, and with the minimum wage for their age group, they won't earn enough to pay taxes.