Bid to make young people’s voices count

Tom Clark is right (Society, 28 January) to highlight the need for young people to vote. With 4 million under-25s not registered it is no wonder the major political parties tend to favour policies that support older voters. But that is starting to change, with many politicians now openly courting the votes of young people. The question will be whether young people wake up to the importance of May’s general election in time. The Centrepoint Parliament is working with other young people supported by Centrepoint through our You Got a Problem campaign to show how decisions made at Westminster have a direct impact on young lives. And, more important, their views can make a difference. On 5 February we’ll be working with Bite the Ballot as part of National Voter Registration Day to try to register 250,000 people in a single day. If we can achieve this aim then it will be impossible for politicians of any parties to ignore the voice of young people during the election campaign.
Ben Wardlaw
Chair, Centrepoint Parliament