Just nearing a month ago, Theresa May consulted her cabinet on the topic of a General Election to happen again, to which all members agreed. The election proposed by Theresa May is to happen on the 8th of June. However, a 2/3rds majority of Parliament must agree for it to occur due to the Fixed Parliament Act of 2011 (a constitutional act that states an election must be held every five years to prevent the abuse of power by a Prime Minister). Just after Parliament voted with just 13 MPs voting against it, the campaign of each political party has begun.
As a 17-year-old turning 18 this year, I am saddened by the simple fact that I will have to wait another five years to vote in a General Election. Just by watching the results of the previous one in 2015, was certainly enough for me to be angry at the fact that I couldn’t vote on issues that are certain to affect me in the future. University fees, health and education and even welfare, only scratch the surface of factors that are bound to affect me in the next five years. This is the main reason why 16 and 17 year-olds should be able to vote.
Personally, I think that people should be more aware of the fact that teenagers in today’s era are more educated than you think. Sure, we have our different ways of expressing different things, and yes, our generation grew up in a boom of technology era – however, instead of seeing these factors as a disadvantage, you should see them as the reason why we should certainly be able to vote.
Growing up in the age of social media has its definite downsides (such as cyberbullying, etc.), but if you think about it, this is the way we are educating ourselves on current affairs and everything going on with politics. This is the way we keep up with the current candidates, their latest comments, scandals and so on.
Social media is where movements are started, where the hidden news is reported, and most importantly, it is where teenagers raise their voice.
In the UK, we have to choose our subjects for A-Level and essentially university at the age of 16. By this time, we are expected to act as adults, expected to treat life more seriously, and we do. And by the amount of pressure that we are put under, the current Conservative government surely doesn’t mind adding more of stress under that. Increasing the university fees, cutting state school funding… There will come a point where you will have enough, having your voice restricted in a democratic manner due to your age and the assumption that you are “uneducated” will have an effect.
It gets to the point where you become frustrated, because if you go to university, your debts will be over £60,000, and you can’t afford rent or food. And it’s all because you were restricted to vote and the elected government believed more in keeping the rich wealthy, and the poor poorer.
