Attempt to Raise Voting Age Defeated in House of Commons London, Apr. 19.
In the committee stage of the Franchise Bill the House of Commons to-day rejected, by 359 votes to 16, an amendment moved by Sir Alexander Sprat (Conservative) in favour of raising the age of persons entitled to be registered as parliamentary electors to 25, except in the ease of voters already registered.
Apr. 18.
The House of Commons to-day Degan the committee stage of the Bill giving votes to women at the age of 21 on the same terms as men. The feature of the debate Was an attempt made by Conservative Members for amendment of the voting age. Sir Alexander Sprat (Conservative) moved an Amendment to define the voting age for both men and women at 25, Wo said that all people to be put fon the roll of voters should have Some experience of life, Moreover, he claimed, there had been no demand for votes from young women, Miss Bondfield (Labour), opposing the amendment, ridiculed the {dea that young people of the working classes, many of whom were between the ages of 14 and 21 and had sulfeved hardship and poverty through unemployment, had had no experi ones of life. It was just section of the community that terested itself in polities.
Lord Hugh Cecil, who Aimongst the Conservatives support ing the amendment, said that the plain truth ought to be recognized that people over 25 were in respect to political judgment more mature than people under 25. This present would add 5,000,000 "young Yoters to the electorate and would thus take away the political power and limit the authority of those now exercising the vote.
Sir William Joynson-Hicks, the Home Secretary, characterized the amendment as a proposal to enfranchise 2,500,000 women og the age of 25 and de franchise 2,500,000 men between the ages of 21 and 25. He regarded that as patting back the political clock.
The amendment was rejected by 350 votes to 16.
Before the House went into committee on the bill, two Conservative members proposed and secomled a motion that it should be an. instruction to the committee that they had power to insert in the Bill provisions dealing with the maximum scale of election expenses.
The amount of money which a candidate for Parliament is allowed to expend in his candidacy is based on a certain sum per head of the electorate. "Supporters of the motion argued that the increase in the electorate which would be created by the bill would generally increase the amount candidates were allowed to spend and that this would benefit wealthy candidates.
Labour and Liberal members specially on these grounds, agreed to revision of the basis of electoral expenses.
The Home Secretary. said that the Government desires this matter be firmly discussed, and the Instructions were agreed to.—British Wireless through Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.