The right to vote for 16 and 17-year-olds will be included in an Elections Bill next year, the Commons leader indicated yesterday.
Lucy Powell said the Government would likely bring forward legislation in the next parliamentary session which will include Labour‘s manifesto pledge to lower the voting age.
The law could also strengthen the rules around donations to political parties.
Labour’s manifesto pledged to ‘increase the engagement of young people in our vibrant democracy’ by lowering the voting age for all elections.
The party did not set out a timetable for the controversial changes but Ms Powell suggested it would be looked at next year.
She made the comments as she was asked about speculation that US billionaire Elon Musk could make a multi-million pound donation to Nigel Farage‘s Reform UK party.
Ms Powell said there were ‘no immediate plans’ to strengthen the rules around donations to political parties.
But she told Sky News: ‘We do have a manifesto commitment to look more broadly at our elections regime, from things like votes at 16, which we’re committed to.
Labour’s manifesto pledged to ‘increase the engagement of young people in our vibrant democracy’ by lowering the voting age for all elections
Lucy Powell said the Government would likely bring forward legislation in the next parliamentary session which will include Labour ‘s manifesto pledge
The Tories have criticised Labour’s plans for votes at 16, accusing the party of trying to ‘rig’ the voting system
She added that Labour wants to make sure the electoral system has ‘integrity’ and is ‘robust’ enough to withstand new issues ‘undermining our democracy’.
Asked if the law could be introduced during this session of Parliament, Ms Powell replied: ‘We are committed to bringing forward some changes to the way in which elections are run.
‘There will be an Elections Bill, probably in the next parliamentary session, but obviously we’ve not made those decisions yet.
‘We are committed to things like [voting at] 16, which is in our manifesto.
‘And our manifesto also said that we would look at other issues to make sure our elections are fair, are robust, are free from many of the issues that are undermining our democracy – like misinformation and disinformation, foreign state actors and so on – and making sure the issues around donations are also fair and robust.’
Parliamentary sessions usually run for around 12 months, though there is no fixed length. The current session started on July 17 with the State Opening of Parliament.
The Tories have criticised Labour’s plans for votes at 16, accusing the party of trying to ‘rig’ the voting system and warning that foreign citizens would be ‘next in line’.
Labour is planning to improve voter registration and ‘address the inconsistencies in voter ID rules that prevent legitimate voters from voting’ such as those with Veteran Cards.
The party has also pledged to establish a new independent Ethics and Integrity Commission to ensure probity in government.
A poll earlier this year revealed the plan to lower the voting age to 16 was opposed by more than half of voters.
Just 38 per cent supported it, according to the research by Lord Ashcroft shared exclusively with the Mail.
