Clause 1 — Referendum on the united kingdom’s membership of the European Union

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 9:45 am on 22 November 2013.

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Photo of Mike Gapes Mike Gapes Labour, Ilford South 9:45, 22 November 2013

Yes. The previous set of amendments, on which we have not yet voted, included amendments proposed by a number of hon. Members and were spoken to by many Members, including my hon. Friend Seema Malhotra. They were about the importance of considering votes for 16 and 17-year-olds in any referendum on the European Union. Surely if the young people of Scotland, with the consent and agreement of the UK Government—it would not have been possible to do it otherwise—are able to vote in September 2014, they will probably feel a little bit miffed, to put it mildly, if they are not then allowed to vote a few weeks, months or years later in another referendum. That will not encourage the participation of young people, who will feel that they have been given a democratic right on the one hand, and had it taken away from them on the other.