Greens flag renewed push to lower voting age to 16
Lowering the voting age to 16 will be one of the first bills introduced when parliament resumes next year as the Greens outline their legislative priorities.
Photo: AAP/Bianca De Marchi
The minor party which holds the balance of power in the Senate says it wants the bill to be the first cab off the rank in the lower house in 2023.
But the bill is unlikely to succeed without the support of the government.
It’s not the first time the Greens have introduced a bill to lower the voting age, with Western Australian senator Jordon Steele-John moving to do so in 2018.
The new Greens MP for Brisbane Stephen Bates will have another crack at it in 2023, saying young people deserve a seat at the table.
He says major issues like climate change, the economy and costs of living are affecting young people but they have no way of having their voices heard.
“They have limited ways to hold politicians to account,” he said.
“Students are taking to the streets in their thousands to demand action on the climate crisis.
“They have no other choice. They’re being left out of the critical decisions that impact them and want their voices to be heard.”
The Brisbane MP says 16-year-olds are trusted to drive cars, enlist in the army and work.
“Yet they have no say in the composition of their own government,” he said.
Sixteen-year-olds can vote in Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Ecuador, Estonia, Malta, Scotland and Wales.
Bates has submitted a notice of intention to move his private members’ bill when parliament resumes in February.
The Greens‘ ACT colleagues also introduced a bill at the end of 2021 to lower the voting age to 16 for territory elections.
-AAP
