Voter apathy is on the increase... Who cares?!

Sadiq Khan, the UK shadow justice secretary, says lowering the voting age to 16 is at the heart of the Labour party's plans for constitutional reform.

He argues that lowering the voting age is a crucial way of tackling the public's malaise towards all things political: “Getting the public into the habit of voting is clearly a key part of any solution if we are to raise the numbers of those who participate in elections. We need to get people hooked on voting at an early age because the evidence shows if you vote when you first become eligible you're more likely to keep on voting for the rest of your life. Don't vote when you're young and you're more likely to never vote...”

A left-leaning think tank has even suggested that voting should actually be made compulsory for first-timers. Labour also wants improved citizenship education in schools. 

Khan says that political parties have to make much more effort if they want to re-connect with the public and demonstrate they are relevant to the issues which affect people's lives on a day-to-day basis.

Khan thinks that the millions of ordinary people who are involved in campaign groups and charities put political parties to shame; translating their community engagement into support for party politics is a challenge for those in Westminster, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast...

A survey shows that nearly half of Britons are disgruntled with politics. Among the voters aged 18 to 24, “ennui” rivals “fury” as the dominant feeling about politics.

When Harold Wilson won the 1964 general election, more than three quarters of people cast their vote across the generations. At the 2010 elections, 76% of over-65s voted, while only 46% aged 18-24 went to the ballot box.

According to a recent poll, apparently only one in ten people aged 18 to 24 were definitely planning to vote at the next general elections...

The above text was adapted from an article in The Guardian.

Questions:

1. What do the words and expressions in bold mean?
2. Who is Sadiq Khan?
3. What is the Labour party?
4. Why does Mr Khan want the voting age to be lowered to 16?
5. Should voting be compulsory do you think?
6. What advice would you give Mr Khan (other than lowering the voting age) to get his political party to "re-connect with the public" ?
7. How do you serve your community? 
8. Why does Mr Khan mention Westminster, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast?
9. Would you say you were more bored than angry about politics and politicians?
10. Will you (or would you if you were allowed to) vote in the next general elections in your own country?

Assignment:

Click HERE!