Petition · past parliament

Grant 16 and 17 year-old UK residents the right to vote in the EU referendum.

Rejected 14 signatures

What the petition asks

The EU referendum is going to be an event that divides Britain firmly down the middle and will decide the course of the United Kingdom for decades to come - it is only fair that the youth of the UK today have a say in tomorrow's future, when we will be the ones most affected.
If 16-17 year olds were permitted to vote in the Scottish referendum, why not in the even more important EU referendum? When 16 year olds can work, raise a child, live by themselves and fight for our country, why can we not vote for the route we believe the UK should take for our generation? When it is the youth who must live with the decision for 80 years, why should the 80 year-old decide? Give sixth forms an election day in the most important decision this century, online if nothing else.

Why it was rejected

There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.

Timeline

21 Feb 2016 Petition opened for signatures
22 Feb 2016 Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 14
Status Rejected
Rejected 22 Feb 2016

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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.