Northern Ireland Office

Secretary of State Peter Hain MP has moved swiftly to bring into effect legislation which will allow candidates aged 18 and over to stand for election in Northern Ireland and take their seats if successful.

The Government will shortly be commencing section 17 of the Electoral Administration Act 2006 which will bring Northern Ireland into line with the rest of the UK by allowing 18-year-olds to stand for election.

Peter Hain said: “The Government believes that it is right that the citizens of Northern Ireland should enjoy the same rights as in the rest of the UK; and it has always been our intention to lower the minimum age for candidates standing for election in Northern Ireland to 18, in line with Great Britain.  

“We had planned to commence the relevant provision of the Electoral Administration Act 2006 later this year, as part of the process of rolling out the other provisions of the Act which will apply to Northern Ireland.  

“But I am delighted that we have been able to deal with this point quickly in response to interest from a number of quarters.”

Notes for Editors

1. Section 17 of the Electoral Administration Act 2006 (“the 2006 Act”) reduces from 21 to 18 the age of qualification for election to the House of Commons or a local authority, and election as mayor, Mayor of London and Assembly Member of the Greater London Authority. This section requires that the candidate is 18 on the day of nomination or, in the case of a local authority election and election to the Greater London Authority, where the election is not preceded by nominations, on the date of the poll. Section 17 was commenced for England, Wales and Scotland on 1 January 2007 by the Electoral Administration Act 2006 (Commencement No.2, Transitional and Savings Provisions) Order 2006.  It has not been commenced in Northern Ireland.
2. Section 36(4) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (“the 1998 Act”) provides that a person is disqualified for membership of the Assembly if he is disqualified for membership of the House of Commons otherwise than under the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975. The statutes which specifically disqualify persons under the age of 21 from election to Parliament are: section 7 of the Parliamentary Elections Act 1695; the Election Act 1707; and section 74 of the Parliamentary Elections (Ireland) Act 1823.  Section 17(7) of the 2006 Act repeals all of these provisions and effectively replaces them with 17(1), which requires that a person must be 18 on the day of nomination (or on the day of the poll in the case of elections to local authorities and the Greater London Authority).
3. The commencement order which we are bringing forward will commence section 17 in Northern Ireland to ensure that the minimum age for membership of the Northern Ireland Assembly is 18, not 21.  
4. The Electoral Commission, the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland, and the  have all been consulted.
5. The remaining provisions of the Electoral Administration Act 2006 which will apply to Northern Ireland will be commenced later in the year.