Stephen Morgan MP has voted during the Third Reading Stage of the Representation of the People Bill in favour of allowing 16- and 17-year-olds the ability to vote in UK-wide elections.
Once passed into law, the Representation of the People Bill will deliver one of the boldest and most ambitious changes to Britain’s democracy for a generation by extending the right to vote in national elections to 16- and-17-year-olds for the very first time.
Alongside this, the Bill contains a series of other reforms intended to keep Britain’s elections secure and encourage more people to engage and participate in our democracy, including:
- Expanding acceptable Voter ID to include UK-authorised bank cards
- Strengthening the postal and proxy voting system
- Introducing stricter donation regulations and enforcement
- Improving democracy protections against foreign actors
Mr Morgan’s support for the Representation of the People Bill not only follows his prior votes in-favour of the Bill during previous stages of the legislative process, but also his longstanding advocacy for lowering the voting age to 16 since coming into office.
Examples of this can be found here and here.
Commenting, Stephen Morgan, MP for Portsmouth South, said:
“I am proud to give my continued support to this bill, which is set to deliver a long-awaited and major change to UK democracy, as promised in our 2024 manifesto.
“Democracy is a fundamental right. However, young people aged 16 and 17 in England have to this day never been given the right to vote in national elections despite being old enough to be taxpayers, renters, carers and join the army.
“It is crucial for Britain’s democracy that everyone who wants to vote is allowed to do so. That is why I have long campaigned for lowering the voting age to 16. Portsmouth people can be reassured that I will continue to support this bill in Parliament to ensure that this much-needed update to our democracy is achieved.”
