Electoral Administration Bill

It seems that becoming a company director is a bit cheaper nowadays than acquiring certain other positions. In reply to the noble Baroness, Lady Hanham, I often agree with her when we are discussing issues concerning elections, but what she said about the amendment sounded just a teeny-weeny bit patronising to young people. Clearly, she did not intend that, but it sounded like that to me. I do not think that the percentage of people voting is relevant here. I return to the point that I keep making: the most important thing in the world is not the proportion of people who voted; it is the opportunity given to those people who wish to vote and the opportunities that they take to vote. If the proportion of 16 and 17 year-olds who vote is lower than the average in the population, that is not an argument for or against votes at 16. The argument for or against votes at 16 rests on its merits as such, not on the outcome. As for bullying, valid points were made by the noble Lord, Lord Campbell-Savours, but the answer lies with postal voting, not with the age of the franchise. If we are talking about the age at which people are bullied, people aged 85 or 90 may get bullied more than anyone else.