Lowering voting age

Well, it's been something Labour have wanted to do for a while - and fair enough. They're right, if you're old enough to work, you're old enough to vote. 

That's an approach underpinned by the premise that by 16, a person may be considered a young adult. 

Which is hardly revolutionary.

16 year olds dont work anymore, they are forced into extra education until they are 19 or something... so by that logic the voting age should be risen to 19 or whatever they can leave forced education from

Not really. Nobody is 'forced' into education in reality,, whatever right-wing rhetoric may claim.

What 16 year olds do after school varies, with some doing A levels, some vocational training and some apprenticeships. 

In any case, the point is that a person can legally work when they are 16 and should therefore have the right to vote.

Not really. Nobody is 'forced' into education in reality,, whatever right-wing rhetoric may claim.

What 16 year olds do after school varies, with some doing A levels, some vocational training and some apprenticeships. 

In any case, the point is that a person can legally work when they are 16 and should therefore have the right to vote.

"When I was a lad"......it was paper rounds, all round....and working on/in gardens that enabled us kiddiwinkles to afford our Beanos / Dandy / Texan Bars.

Well yeah, under 16s with paid work - usually family. 

It doesn't help that we no longer live in houses with big chimneys that need cleaning.

How is one supposed to instill a decent work ethic in surplus pre-teens these days?

From an insurance perspective, many commercial policies make it VERY expensive to allow children to be employed.  Obviously, some employers don't really care about insurance matters.

It was difficult when the shop I worked in wanted to give a 14 year old a saturdy job and that was England,

I was replaying to another poster in my earlier post.

This site makes replying so disjointed and finding a post, it's very had to have some sort of idea of where a conversation's going when the posts jump about so much.

TheCatWoman said:

t's difficult as an employer to give someone under 16 a saturday job, you have to have permission from their head teacher.

I'm not sure this is true in the UK. 

I agree that young people are stopped from working, it's ok if you have some sort of family business you can go into, even if its mucking our horses, but its difficult if you don't, it's difficult as an employer to give someone under 16 a saturday job, you have to have permission from their head teacher.

I think you people are being infanalised, I know all the I left school at 14 and it did me no harm arguments, I do think that education to A level, BTECH or whatever is important too, there's so much to learn and the job market is ever changing. I dont' think you can leave school with nothing and expect to go into a job and muddle along sweeping floors or even work your way up anymore.

It's some form of training up to 18, basically. 

You're right, it used to be possible to leave school at 16 and do nothing. Or get a job. 

Getting a job at 16? Why not? 

It's difficult now and will remain so for as long as the minimum wage for under 21's is so low. 

they changed the laws though.... in my age, in my day... i could leave school at 16 and do nothing, which i did.... around when i was in my 20s sometime they had this big law change and big thing where they changed the law and stated after high school kids must remain in education until they are 19 or something..... or take a apprenticeship.. which still counts.