Monday 28 October 2019

Of Bills And Paying

When it became clear that we were not leaving on Thursday, then Boris Johnson should have resigned. When he cannot get his General Election tonight, then the case for his doing so will be unanswerable. In any meaningful sense, he is simply not the Prime Minister at all. 

But there is talk of a one clause Bill tomorrow, to force a General Election without reference to the Fixed-term Parliaments Act. A what? Every effort will be made to give it more than one clause.

A referendum, lowering the voting age, giving EU citizens the vote, and revoking Article 50 will all be proposed, debated, and voted on at more than one stage in each House of Parliament, one of which has no time limit on debates and can in any case sit on a Bill for up to a year. And there will be more.

I just don't get lowering the voting age. I have tried, but I just don't get it. The argument that "they pay tax" only works if you have to pay tax to vote. Anyway, five-year-olds can pay tax when they spend their pocket money, depending on what they buy. You cannot now leave the system, not necessarily school but some arm of the system, until you are 18. It is quite the Sixth Form Saturday job that pays £12,501. It is quite the apprenticeship that pays £12,501.

"You should have the vote if you pay income tax or National Insurance" is a bad argument in itself, according to which you would not have the vote if you did not pay income tax or National Insurance. But only the tiniest number of 16 and 17-year-olds pays those taxes, anyway. There are probably more very rich 16 and 17-year-olds paying income tax than there are apprentices doing so. But beyond this nonsense about tax, I have never heard or read an argument for votes at 16 that was not fundamentally and ultimately an argument for votes at birth.

Another hung Parliament is coming, however, and we need our people to hold the balance of power in it. A new party is now in the process of registration. After nearly 30 years of suggestion, speculation, and even a sort of preparation, I will stand for Parliament here at North West Durham. The crowdfunding page is here, and buy the book here. Please email davidaslindsay@hotmail.com. Very many thanks.

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