Lib Dems ‘are the young people’s party’
The Liberal Democrats can offer young people a different vision of politics, Charles Kennedy said today.
The party leader highlighted pledges on electoral reform, lowering the voting age, civil liberties and the environment as examples of how the Lib Dems were committed to young people’s concerns.
And Mr Kennedy accused Labour of alienating youngsters through their ‘respect’ agenda, and refusing to allow them to contribute to politics in the way they would like.
“We represent a change to the status quo – an end to the comfortable two-party system. That is attractive to younger people,” he said in a keynote speech at the London School of Economics.
“But so is what we stand for – and stand up for. Our defence of human rights and fundamental civil liberties; our innate sense of fairness; our commitment to social justice; our environmentalism; our belief in international law.”
He cited a mock general election conducted by the Hansard Society, where Lib Dems scored 42 per cent of the vote compared with 17 per cent for Labour and 24 per cent for the Conservatives.
And inside parliament, he noted that the party is the youngest, with one in five Lib Dem MPs aged 40 or under, compared to one in ten for Labour, and 15 per cent aged 35 or under, compared to just four per cent of Tory MPs.
“We are the natural political party for younger people because we put these principles at the heart of our policy and our message,” Mr Kennedy declared.
He accused Tony Blair of talking about the importance of marrying rights and responsibilities, but failing to apply this by asking young people to pay taxes at 16 but not allowing them to vote until two years later.
And turning to Labour’s efforts to introduce ‘respect’ in society, Mr Kennedy said that giving young people a vote and making this vote count is “the real respect agenda”.
“It goes far beyond the narrow issues the government is focusing on. We Liberal Democrats believe respect is a two-way street. If society does not respect its younger people, how can it demand their respect in return?” he argued.
The current electoral system is alienating younger voters by denying them a political voice, he said, adding: “It is about respecting younger people’s choices, and winning their respect in return by giving them the prospect of a future where they can make a living and make a difference.”
