16 reasons to let 16 year olds vote

As you've probably got from the title i thought i'd tell you a little bit about why giving the vote to 16 year olds in the UK is a good idea.... So here we go...

1: 16 year olds have to take part in compulsory citizenship lessons so they aren't completely oblivious to politics

2: At 16 the government clearly thinks you are reasonably responsible as you're allowed to leave home, get married, have sex, join the armed forces, own premium bonds and work full time. methinks that's quite a bit of responsibility why not add voting to the pile?

3: You can actively take part in politics at any age, especially in your teens. For example you can join the Labour party at 14. Why not let people vote for the parties they are members of?

4: 16 year olds can vote in Austria, Brazil and Argentina amongst others.

5: to continue from point 2- you can also claim benefits, you have to pay more for travel and you have to pay for your prescriptions. Therefore why can't 16 year olds be involved in what happens to these expenses? Why can't they help choose whether travel costs go up, the NHS gets privatised or benefits get cut? Why can't they help vote for the party that will help them to survive?

6: Prisoners can't vote- do we compare 16 year olds to prisoners?

7: It would help prevent governments ignoring the needs and wants of their young people. Would Gove have been able to damage the education system so much if 16 year olds had the vote?

8: Governments make 16 year olds into children when in fact they have finished their school education and are about to become members of the community who no longer rely on their parents for very much including their parents choosing which government represents them.

9: Not giving 16 year olds the vote makes the rest of the public assume that 16 year olds are not mature, responsible or well-informed which encourages stereotyping and prejudice- that's not right.

10: Some working 16 year olds pay tax. The government relies on their input in the same way that it relies on 18 year olds- maybe it should start listening to them.

11: Arguably 18 year olds are less enthused about politics because they have already left education and have not had to contribute and participate in citizenship lessons. Some 16 year olds have finished their citizenship courses and according to the education system know all they need to know about politics- why let that knowledge stagnate? Lowering the voting age could ensure that young people continue to be informed about politics for a longer amount of time.

12: If we don't listen to 16 year olds in a controlled and well structured way, they might try to voice their opinions in an uncontrolled and unregulated way- do we need more riots because we won't respect our young people's intelligence?

13: The reason we are even considering lowering the age of voting is evidence that we understand that 16 year olds play an important role in politics nowadays.

14: We often assume that the people we do let vote fulfil all of the criteria that we are using to justify not letting 16 year olds vote. Sadly not all middle aged people are mature, responsible or well-informed.

15: many people say that 16 year olds have less "stake" in the country. This isn't true however- as young people are likely to spend the most time in the country (because they have the rest of their lives to live) after it's been changed by a government they couldn't choose, it seems a little unfair to suggest that they are lesser citizens who aren't going to be as affected by the bad choices of parliament.

16: We live in a democracy. 16 year olds are just as important as 18 year olds (and everyone else for that matter) and therefore should have equal say in what happens in their country. It's not fair to penalise them for their age when there are many reasons (some of which are stated above) that say they should definitely be given the vote. It just makes sense.

And there you have it. Let us vote. I'm a young person and I'd like to vote. In fact I'd love to vote and I think I am entitled to do so. I'd also love to see a bit of positive change politically in our country- we've been rather deprived of good decisions methinks.

TIP: Help 16 year olds get the vote. Support the campaign. Do some research. Help us out. Let us vote.

this is one of my fave blogs: http://politicsforteenagers.blogspot.co.uk/?m=1