Curran Backs Move To Cut Voting Age

Shadow Scottish secretary Margaret Curran has pledged the Labour Party's support for immediate legislation to ensure 16 and 17-year-olds can vote in the next Scottish Parliament elections.

Ms Curran has written to Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael offering to support an order devolving the franchise to the Holyrood immediately if it is brought forward by the UK Government.

Her letter comes after Labour leader Ed Miliband said yesterday that 16 and 17-year-olds would get the vote in UK elections from as early as 2016 under Labour proposals.

He promised to pass legislation to extend the franchise to 1.5 million more teenagers in the first session of the next Westminster parliament.

Ms Curran has pledged to support a Section 30 order - which would hand control over who can vote to Holyrood - to be debated in the UK Parliament before the general election in May.

This would allow time for the Scottish Parliament to implement changes and ensure that 16 and 17-year-olds can vote in the 2016 Holyood elections, she said.

She has also called for talks with Mr Carmichael to look at other areas where Smith Commission powers could be devolved without primary legislation.

She wrote: As you know, the Labour Party fully supported devolving power over the franchise for Scottish Parliament elections during the Smith Commission process and we back votes for 16 and 17-year-olds at the 2016 elections.

That is why I am writing to offer our support for a Section 30 order to devolve the franchise to the Scottish Parliament immediately if it is brought forward by the Government.

I would also like to meet with you before Christmas to discuss what other proposals made by the Smith Commission may not require primary legislation and what powers we could seek to devolve through Section 30 orders.

With the vow now delivered, I understand that many of the Smith Commission proposals will require primary legislation, and Labour will introduce a Scotland Act in our first Queen's Speech. However, it is right that we should assess which powers could be passed more quickly and where the Labour Party could offer its support.''