Debate contribution: Voting Age: 16- and 17-year-olds

Debate contribution by Mr Robbie Butler on 24 September 2024.

MLA

Mr Robbie Butler

Party at the time

Ulster Unionist Party

Date

24 September 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Voting Age: 16- and 17-year-olds

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4644831

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Members, today we will debate a matter that could, in a very positive way, copper-fasten our ambition and secure Northern Ireland's democracy for generations. The voices of our young people, particularly those aged 16 to 17, are growing louder. Our young people are more informed and passionate than they have ever been. Those young citizens are not only the leaders of tomorrow but active participants in today. They care about their future, and they care about our future. They care about climate change, mental health services, education and equality, and it is time to entrust them with the vote, just as we entrust them with so many other responsibilities in their life. In Scotland and Wales, 16- and 17-year-olds already enjoy the right to vote in national and local elections. With their higher voter turnout, they are proving that young people, when given the chance, engage seriously with the political process.

Absolutely, if you keep it brief.

Thank you. On that point, we were all ill prepared for that vote, and look at how it turned out. The critical point about that is the education piece, which I am going to go on to, and I thank the Member for his intervention. In Scotland, studies have shown that voter participation among 16- and 17-year-olds exceeds that of 18- to 24-year-olds, largely because younger voters are still embedded in environments like school and in the family, which promotes socialisation and civic responsibility. Extending the vote to younger citizens is crucial to cultivating lifelong voting habits, ensuring a vibrant and enduring democracy. Young people today are eager to be empowered. Granting them the right to vote at 16 must be supported by high-quality, universal and accurate education before they reach that age: that is from the voices and mouths of those young people. That foundation of education is essential, not only to encourage greater participation from this cohort in the democratic process but to ensure that they are equipped with the knowledge and critical thinking skills necessary to make those informed decisions. By fostering a deeper understanding of civic responsibility and political systems, we can ensure that young people wield the power of their democratic will with a level of insight and preparedness that surpasses many of the generations before them, including my own. Empowering youth through education is key to cultivating informed engagement and engaged citizens who will actually shape our future. The idea that young people lack the maturity to vote is outdated and baseless. At 16, they can join the armed forces; they can pay taxes; they can even get married. Most concerning, perhaps, is the fact that, in Northern Ireland, from the age of 10, young people can be held criminally responsible. We entrust them with these enormous responsibilities that I have mentioned, yet we deny them a say in shaping the laws that govern their lives. The argument against lowering the voting age falls apart when we consider the contradiction that those who resist votes at 16 often shy away from, which is to address the glaring imbalance with the criminal age of responsibility. Politics in Action and the Northern Ireland Youth Forum, in particular, are at the forefront of the movement for votes from 16, advocating passionately for the rights of their young people. Those organisations have highlighted the fact that young people are already politically aware, engaged and capable of making informed decisions. They are leading campaigns that speak truth to power and are demanding that Northern Ireland catches up with its neighbours. We must not stifle that energy nor waste the opportunity. The time has come to give young people the democratic voice that they deserve. Let us lower the voting age to 16 and, in doing so, build a fairer and more responsible and representative society for all.

635 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:06 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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