MOSCOW (Sputnik), Anastasia Levchenko — On Thursday, the British government presented a bill on the UK in-out referendum to the parliament. The Conservatives oppose lowering the age of eligibility to vote, while pro-European forces in the parliament advocate that 16- and 17-years-old should be allowed to have a say.
"The European Union provides many important protections to workers, and with 16 and 17 year olds a part of the workforce, it is vital that they have their say in the membership referendum," Owen Tudor, TUC Head of International Relations, told Sputnik.
The Scottish Independence Party claims Cameron should follow the example of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, where the minimum voting age was 16 years. Having strong representation at Westminster after the recent elections, the Scottish National Party seeks changes to the EU referendum bill.
"We have got a number of concerns about the referendum and will include the right to vote for young people as part of our representations to government. Most importantly, we believe it should not be used as an excuse by politicians or businesses to negotiate away any of the workers’ rights and social protections currently conferred by EU membership," Tudor continued.
The legislation stipulates that the vote would take place no later than on December 31, 2017. The Britons will be asked "Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union?"
Changes that the new UK government would like to introduce include reforming the system of contributions to the bloc's budget and providing the member states with greater powers to control migrant inflow.
