I was proud to vote for the Representation of the People Bill, which has now passed to the House of Lords.
I’ve long campaigned for votes at 16, including through my own Private Member’s Bill, first brought forward with the help of Oldham Youth Council in 2017. That work, alongside the efforts of many others, helped build the campaign, leading to the establishment of the All-Party Parliamentary Group and ultimately securing votes at 16 as a Labour Party manifesto commitment. It is now a government priority Bill before Parliament – what a journey!
The Bill also takes important steps to tackle foreign interference in our democracy and strengthen the integrity of our elections. This is important to safeguard our democratic system from those who seek to undermine it through foreign interference and influence.
The votes at 16 campaign, kickstarted in Oldham, is now another step closer to helping deliver change across the country.
I hope that when the members of Oldham Youth Council who helped start this project walk past the statue of Annie Kenney, they walk a little taller, knowing that they took up their generational responsibility to fight for a fairer democracy.
Jim McMahon OBE MP 