16 and 17 year olds to be allowed to vote

SIXTEEN and 17-year-olds in Fermanagh will be able to vote at the next general election after the UK Government recently pledged its commitment to lower the voting age from 18 years of age.
There has been widespread reaction locally to the news the UK Government has reduced the age for voting, while making a range of other measures, including different types of identification proof.
Local councillor, Dermot Browne, has been lobbying the government to reduce the voting age.
“Empowering young people with the vote encourages a lifetime of political engagement. This is a welcome step forward in strengthening democracy,” Mr Browne, pictured below, said following the news.
“Extending voting rights to 16 and 17 year olds was one of the very first issues I raised after I got elected in 2023, and I am delighted we finally seem to be moving forward with this change.”
It is the biggest change to voting ages since 1969, when the age was cut to 18, from 21.
In Wales and Scotland, the minimum voting age for election was 16 years old, but the age remained at 18 for elections in the North and England, prior to the latest announcement.
The UK Government is planning to introduce the changes to voting age by 2029, but some local councillors are urging the legislation to be pushed through soon than the proposed date.
“We now need to ensure that these changes are ready in time for the [Stormont] Assembly and Council elections due to take place in 2027,” Cllr Browne explained.