A wise woman.

Sentiment score: 0.48

Ar dtús báire, gabhaim buíochas leis na Daonlathaithe Sóisialta agus an Teachta Farrelly as ucht an Bille seo a thabhairt faoi bhráid na Dála. Cuirim fáilte roimh na cuairteoirí go léir atá anseo. Is Bille tábhachtach simplí é seo. I mo thuairim, caithfidh muid é seo a thabhairt isteach, because I believe, and the Labour Party believes, that the voting age should be lowered to 16. This is something Joe Costello, who served in this House for many years, first introduced in a Bill as far back as 2006. This is a fair change but it is forward thinking, inclusive and necessary for the health of our democracy. I am worried. In the recent presidential election we saw a large and significant spoiled vote. There are many reasons for that. However, a common thread throughout all the reasons is a democratic deficit. This Bill is a way of addressing that democratic deficit. If you are old enough to work, to pay tax, to have sex and have children, as many 17-year-olds in this country do, then you should have the right to exercise the democratic franchise. Democracy is about representation. I am conscious that many of the decisions we make as TDs and public representatives disproportionately affect many young people who do not have that voice or agency in our decision-making process. A person aged 16 or 17, as well as paying tax and working, can consent to medical treatment and can enlist in the Defence Forces. Young people contribute so much to the economy, to our communities and society. They must have more of a say in how our country is run and how society is run. I often think of the principle "no taxation without representation". If we trust young people to take on adult responsibilities such as raising children then surely we can trust them to go to a ballot box and vote. There is an awful myth that we hear at times that young people are not that interested in politics. As constituency TDs, many of us spend a lot of time in secondary schools in our individual constituencies. I have often come out of some of my local secondary schools nearly with my tail between my legs. You would not get the level of probing questions, of interest or insight from some of our esteemed national broadcasters as you would in a local secondary school. I was in Ardscoil Mhuire in Limerick recently, Villiers and Laurel Hill, and I was blown away by how tuned-in all the students were. There was a great Labour Party Minister for education, my predecessor, Jan O'Sullivan, who introduced the politics and society leaving certificate in 2016, which started with 40 students on a pilot programme. We can all acknowledge that it has been very successful. If we look at the recent presidential election, there was a groundswell of young people who came out, particularly in support of Catherine Connolly's campaign. However, going further back to the big civil society campaigns in recent years such as marriage equality and repeal, those campaigns were driven on the ground by younger people. Young people in Ireland have been front and centre of some of the most important social and environmental issues of our time. I am thinking for example of the climate marches when they first started seven or eight years ago. Saoirse Exton in Limerick was a transition year student who started the Fridays For Future Climate Strike in Limerick. We saw how the Fridays For Future movement filled the streets of Dublin, Cork and Limerick. Who was at the front of that? Who was leading it? Who was calling for meaningful climate action before politicians? Teenagers were, 15-, 16- and 17-year-olds who are going to live the longest with the consequences of whatever decisions we make. I do not believe lowering the voting age would suddenly make young people take an interest. I think young people are interested. There is a lot of engagement there and it needs to be given democratic power. We have seen countries that did this, such as Scotland and Austria. Some Deputies pointed to the Scottish independence referendum. The evidence shows that when people cast their vote at 16 or 17, they are more likely to keep voting throughout their lives. I think that, by doing this, we would not be taking a leap into darkness. We would be giving young people a real say in their future. The political decisions we are making in climate, education, housing, healthcare and the future digital regulation of social media companies, these are all long-term issues that will affect us consequentially, probably as far as 2050. The people who will be most affected by this are the people who at the moment do not have a direct say in decision-making. If a vibrant, healthy democracy is meant to represent all who are governed, all of us, how can we continue to justify excluding a whole generation whose future is decided right now? I am pretty sure 80, 100 or 120 years ago many similar arguments were made about extending the democratic franchise to women. The fact of the matter is, when we lower the voting age, we legitimise and acknowledge the experiences of young people. It might force all of us to actually listen more to younger people, not talk down to them or not listen to them when they turn up to protest or when, for example, they take to social media, but actually listen to them through the ballot box. Some might argue that 16-year-olds are not mature enough, but Deputy Conway-Walsh made a very good point when she stated, we are taking about 24 months. Maturity does not magically arrive on your 18th birthday. I know adults who vote carelessly. God knows we saw enough of it in the presidential election. I also know teenagers who really think deeply and are cognisant of what is going on in this country at the present time. The research shows that by the age of 16, a young person has the same cognitive capacity for reasoning and moral judgment as an adult. The fact of the matter is, it is simply condescending to say young people are too easily influenced. Let us be honest, we are all adults and we are not immune to being influenced either. Every voter, whether they are 18 or 88 is exposed to the same outlets, whether social media, print media or advertising. Democracy does not need perfection. What it needs is participation. This would make more than a little difference; it would make a significant difference. I call on the Government to withdraw its amendment because a small expansion of the electorate would send an important and powerful signal that this country, the country that has had ten democratically elected presidents, the longest unbroken system in the world in terms of a democratically elected Head of State, values its young people as equal participants and will give them a seat at the table, listen to them and acknowledge and reflect upon their experiences. It is a valuable opportunity to change how we talk about politics. All parties and none pay an awful lot of lip service to young people and their issues when it comes to election time. This would encourage parties to take youth issues and participation seriously, and speak to young people, make policies that reflect their concerns and strengthen civic and community engagement. It would tell an entire generation of young people we are listening, we acknowledge them, we are taking their concerns on board and we will act on them. Go raibh maith agat.

Sentiment score: 0.13