At last year's general election voter turnout increased in every age group but one. The exception was among young people, where turnout for 18- to 24-year-olds fell from 39 to 37 per cent. The politicians are worried. For if the trend continues, only one in three young people will bother voting in two elections' time.
The picture has changed fast. In 1997 all looked rosy in democracy's garden, with 68 per cent of young people voting in the general election.
That was after 18 years of Conservative rule when young people sensed a fresh beginning with New Labour. But idealism is short-lived and the trend reversed by the time the nation went back to the polls in 2001.
Democracy denied
So why are young people turning away from democracy? Beccy Earnshaw, participation manager at The Electoral Commission, says young people have not deserted politics, rather they have lost interest in voting. For in the same year that 18- to 24-year-olds stayed away from the ballot box in record numbers, young people rallied enthusiastically behind the Make Poverty History campaign and the Live 8 concert. "All our research suggests young people have the same level of interest in politics as other groups," she says. "But when it comes to going out and putting their cross in the box they are not taking part." Earnshaw puts this down to a different consumerist attitude to the vote, rather than the "civic duty" of old.
Young people believe politicians should "make a case for why I should vote, why I should bother", she says.
But the party system, unlike the single issue campaign, runs counter to this consumerist approach, Earnshaw explains. "When you sign up to party politics you buy into a lump of policies; you can't pick and choose," she says.
"Young people are used to downloading the bits of music they want; they pick from what's available and choose what they like." Neither do party labels mean much to them. Class and social background, traditionally important factors in how young people voted, are not necessarily how young people really define themselves, she argues. "It may be that they are defined by their music or the clothes that they wear today." The trouble is that voting is a habit that has to be learned, she says. And if young people miss out at the beginning they are far harder to reach later on. Targeted campaigns can help (see box, p15) and The Electoral Commission has paid for television and poster advertising aimed at young people. At the last election its animated punch line was: "If you don't do politics, what do you do?"
On one issue - voting age - the electoral body has provoked a heated debate. Two years ago, the commission came out against proposals for lowering the voting age to 16. The Liberal Democrat peer Lord Goodhart told the House of Lords at the time that this was a missed opportunity: "There is a great advantage in getting students involved at the time they are studying citizenship. People aged 16 or 17 may well be more likely to vote than 18- to 24-year-olds." And he rejected the commission's decision to accept young people's stated reason that they didn't have the information to make an informed decision: "Forgive me for being cynical, but the classic response is a euphemism for 'can't be bothered', and I think the commission is entirely wrong to take it at face value."
The debate has been reinvigorated by the recent Power to the People report, funded by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, which investigated the state of democracy in Britain. The report recommended that the voting and candidacy age for elections other than the House of Lords be reduced to 16, and that automatic voter registration at 16 be introduced. This latter point would be done in tandem with the allocation of National Insurance numbers, and avoid the common and frustrating experience of people who want to vote discovering a few weeks before the election that they have not registered in time. The commission also decided that "text voting or email voting should only be considered following other reform of our democratic arrangements".
Community outreach
Research by the Nestle Social Research Programme found that those young people who expect to vote in elections are the same young people who are involved in community activities. And the people who get involved are those who agreed with the statement: "I often get upset by events in the news." The same research discovered that beyond Tony Blair there was little recognition of politicians. Even more shocking was that only 48 per cent trusted the Government to make laws that were fair to everyone, regardless of background. So what can politicians do to improve the situation?
Justine Greening, Conservative spokeswoman on young people, says teenagers are fed up with politicians who talk about what they're going to do but never deliver on those promises. She believes that a combination of citizenship education, MPs getting out and about in their constituencies and school visits to Parliament would help. But it is also vital for politicians to look at things from young people's perspective."We talk about hard-working families or pensioners, but we don't really talk enough from young people's point of view about things such as crime or public transport," she says.
Youth workers argue that the formality of politics turns young people off, too. But Fiona Booth, director of citizenship education at the Hansard Society, believes it is more likely to be a lack of knowledge. In particular, she is scathing about the standard of citizenship education in schools.
"When the subject began to be taught in schools in 2002 the majority of teachers were only given an hour's training. It was absurd," she says.
Tellingly, it is the Parliament, government and elections part of the subject that is the worst taught. A recent workshop organised by the Hansard Society, which was initially oversubscribed, was only half full, even though travel expenses were being paid for. She believes citizenship education needs to be given greater precedence in the curriculum to force head teachers to release teachers for further training.
Talking to Young People Now in her first interview since becoming elections minister, Bridget Prentice accepted that there were "a lot of people teaching citizenship who weren't as well trained as they ought to be" and said she would be raising the matter with other ministers. She doesn't believe young voters are apathetic: "They just don't make the connection with the House of Commons or the politicians they see on television." And she is sympathetic to the idea of votes at 16: "When you say that you can get married, join the Army and pay taxes at 16, you'd have to put a pretty strong argument against that."
But she admitted that "it's not something that will happen immediately".
On new voting methods, though, she is more confident. So does that mean we'll soon be able to vote by text, email and interactive television?
"We're half-way there with the technology," says Prentice. "If we can make sure we've got a robust and secure system then I don't see why not."
Surprisingly, some young people are opposed to text voting. Rowan Boothe, a 17-year-old from Kilburn, believes it is a bad idea as it could be manipulated and wouldn't be trusted by people. In any case, he won't be voting at the next general election. "Voting doesn't seem to be anything significant," says Rowan. "If they want to pass laws they'll do it anyway." Like many young people he doesn't know who his local MP is, and feels that the kind of people who become MPs are not representative of their communities.
"It doesn't seem that real people come up from the community and get these jobs," he says. He wants someone who can keep their promises to the voters.
John Page, 18, from Salford, says he probably will vote in the local elections: "But I wouldn't know who to vote for. I only know Tony Blair." While clearly passionate about issues such as Iraq - he went on an anti-war march in Manchester - he said he didn't know which party was in Government and couldn't name the Chancellor. "Is it Charles Brown?" But he did know his MP was Hazel Blears. He said watching more politicians on Big Brother would be "interesting" but that George Galloway had been an "idiot" on the programme. "He is just one big joke," says John. "That was a laugh when he was a pussycat but he just made a fool out of himself."
New outlook
There are bright spots, however. Since its introduction three years ago, the Hansard Society's MPs in Schools programme has proved a success, and 800,000 young people voted in last year's school mock general elections.
But Raji Hunjan, director of schools and democracy at the Carnegie Young People Initiative, says there is no big push to involve young people.
"This is a big problem," says Hunjan. "It will take a lot of commitment, time and money to reverse this trend. It's got to be part of a wider package of things like automatic voter registration."
Changes to the political system may be necessary, too. "A lot of young people are very mobile these days - moving about all over, so where do they vote? We're not so entrenched in our communities as we once were," says Hunjan. The first-past-the-post constituency system might have had its day, she believes: "If we move over to a system of proportional representation, our political parties would really need to raise their game."
Additional interviews by Gabriella Jozwiak
VOTES FOR LONDON
The 1824 Collective aimed to get 18- to 24-year-olds in London on to the electoral register before the local elections in May. Advertisements at underground stations proclaimed in big letters, "The biggest unsigned group in the UK", before explaining: "If you are aged between 18 and 24 you are a member of one of the most influential groups in the UK. There are five million of us across the country. If we all vote our voice cannot be ignored."
Internet links
It gave out text numbers and internet links about how the registration process could begin. The advertising campaign was backed up by a CD single put together by urban music artists, which was played on radio and TV.
In London, 10 per cent of eligible voters are not registered, compared with seven per cent for the UK as a whole. And fewer than one in three eligible young people are expected to vote in next week's local elections.
The campaign was led by the Department for Constitutional Affairs and involved the Mayor of London, Operation Black Vote, The Electoral Commission, the Association of London Government and the Commission for Racial Equality.
Seen not heard
An ICM poll, carried out for London Mayor Ken Livingstone, revealed that 82 per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds didn't think there would be any elections this year, and that 72 per cent of respondents could not name their own MP. Reasons they gave for not voting included apathy, lack of engagement and a feeling that they wouldn't be heard.
The collective's campaign ended on 13 March and it remains to be seen if it will have the desired effect. Ashok Viswanathan, assistant director of Operation Black Vote, one of the organisations behind the initiative, believes 1824 will make a difference. "For too long young people have allowed politics to be a spectator sport. We are trying to ensure they are not just sitting on the sidelines but are playing an integral part."
YOUNG PEOPLE ON POLITICS
NATALIE MURRAY, 16, lives in supported accommodation provided by The Bridge & Youth Housing Support Service in Stirling
Young people don't vote because they know too little about the political parties. The Government and politicians must learn to talk to young people if they want their vote.
I don't know a lot about politics but I know our local MP is Anne McGuire because I've seen her poster. I don't watch the news, so politics isn't a part of my life.
Young people shouldn't vote until they're 18, but voting at 16 could give more people a say. But people who don't vote have no right to complain.
CHARLENE BROWN, 23, is chair of Lambeth Youth Council
More needs to be done to promote voting. The Government should incorporate more activities about politics into schools and youth groups. Young people will be more interested if they realise how voting affects them. Peer-to-peer activities work well and politicians should learn to work alongside young people's agencies.
In terms of the voting age, I don't think it should be lowered. We teach young people about sex education and drugs to help them make the right decisions. It would be better to educate them about politics so they could make an informed decision when they turn 18.
GARY HIND, 17, is a student from Portsmouth and member of CHUMS, a support service for young people run by Connexions South Central
Young people don't vote because they find politics boring. They don't understand what MPs do and think politicians sound posh. I'm interested in issues relating to young people, such as gun crime and drugs, but you don't hear enough about them.
When I'm 18, I'll only vote if I can understand what different parties stand for. They all seem to offer the same things. But the voting age shouldn't be lowered to 16 - it's too young to make the right choice.
MITCHELL THEAKER, 15, is from South Wales and a member of five youth forums, including Funky Dragon
Politicians do listen if young people go to the right places. I've taken part in many elections in my youth forums and I'm used to voting.
But politicians often don't take on board young people's views enough.
They say that they do, but really they just set up youth forums to try and look good.
Reducing the voting age to 16 could help get young people more interested in politics. If people aren't voting when they're 18, what's the harm in letting younger people have a go?
VICTORIA WOODS, 21, is a fine arts degree student from Berkshire
The Government doesn't take young people's views seriously. Educating young people about politics should be part of the curriculum, because young people don't read newspapers or watch the news. I mentor young people and they can have more sensible ideas than adults. Politicians are good at stating their opinions, but rarely act on them.
I voted in the general election and plan to vote in the local elections this week because I'm concerned about local issues. But voting at 16 is a bad idea. I wouldn't have known which party to vote for when I was that age.
