This petition was submitted during the 2015-2017 parliament
Rejected petition Re-hold the EU referendum allowing 16 and 17 year olds to vote.
16 and 17 year olds are one of the groups which the outcome of the referendum will affect the most, as they will have to live with the consequences for the longest. It is therefore objectionable that they were deprived of the right to vote in the first EU referendum.
More details
According to a survey by ICM, 75% of 16 and 17 year olds voted in the Scottish Independence referendum - in comparison to 54% of 18 - 24 year olds. At the age of 16 a person can legally marry, enlist in the UK armed forces and pay National Insurance. It is therefore abhorrent that 16 and 17 year olds were disallowed from having their say in what is irrefutably one of the most important referenda in their lifetimes.
This petition was rejected
Why was this petition rejected?
It’s not clear what the petition is asking the UK Government or Parliament to do.
The EU referendum has already taken place. It is therefore no longer possible for the franchise (the groups of people who are entitled to vote) to be changed.
If you would like the UK voting age to be lowered to 16, you might like to sign this petition instead:
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/119769
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.