Lowering the voting age to 16 may help to shine a light on problems facing young people, a member of Bermuda’s Youth Parliament argued this week.

Monica Clarke highlighted how people aged 16 and 17 can work, represent the island at overseas events and care for younger siblings in Bermuda, but are not old enough to vote in elections.

She said: “When 16 and 17-year-olds are excluded from voting, governments have fewer electoral reasons to prioritise issues that directly affect them, including youth unemployment, affordability of higher education, mental health services, recreational opportunities, affordable housing and the rising cost of living.”

Ms Clarke and fellow youth parliamentarians Chris Madeiros and Zara Siddiqi spoke in the House of Assembly on Wednesday in favour of a motion to lower Bermuda’s voting age to 16.

The event was organised by The Office of Youth Affairs as part of its National 18+ Youth Conference, which runs until July 13.

Youth Parliament alumni Ariana Evans-Caines, McKenzie‑Kohl Tuckett and Ywione Darrell argued against the motion, while Taj Donville-Outerbridge, another former youth parliamentarian, took the role of Speaker of the House.

Among those looking on were MPs such as Dennis Lister, the Speaker, Dennis Lister III, a former youth parliamentarian and the Junior Minister of Justice and Finance, and Douglas De Couto, the Shadow Minister of Finance.

Ms Evans-Caines argued that 16 and 17-year-olds should not be able to vote without “adequate infrastructure” in place and that many young people might leave Bermuda for school soon after receiving the right.

She said: “Elsewhere in our electoral system, the standard is that voting is reserved for those who have an ongoing engagement, commitment and presence in Bermuda, so why create a different standard for 16-year-olds?”

Ms Siddiqi said lowering Bermuda’s voting age can “build a generation of informed and engaged citizens who see voting not as a burden, like those in Bermuda do, but as a normal part of civic life”.

She added: “By only listening to older voices in regards to politics, we are blacklisting one of the most important populations on the island.”

Ms Tuckett said that young people may not have the tools to fully understand politics and should be “equipped with the knowledge to scrutinise policies, analyse debates and see through spin”.

She added: “That should not be deemed as a luxury, but under the status quo, it is. Before we address adding to our voting population, we need to address that issue.”

Mr Madeiros said the proposed education should coincide with giving young people the right to vote.

He said: “Because of our ageing population and because 16 and 17-year-olds are locked out of the vote, we see [votes] shifting more and more to one demographic.

“A democracy is not about old or middle-aged persons, it’s about every single member of society, whether you want to hear them speak or not.”

Mr Darrell said civic education offers the most political equity for people younger than 18.

He argued: “We don’t want to overburden youth at such as young age where they’re still developing a view of civic engagement and their independent perspectives with this enormous responsibility [of voting].”

Judges Tinée Furbert, the Minister of Youth, Social Development and Seniors, Shomari Talbot-Woolridge, the chairman of Progressive Minds, and Destinee Taylor, a former Youth Opposition leader, determined that the alumni group won the debate.

Judges named Ms Siddiqi and Ms Tuckett the best Youth Parliament and alumni debater respectively.

Mr Furbert praised debaters’ skills and passion for the topic and hoped existing and former youth parliamentarians will collaborate more.