Young footballers having their picture taken with Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage,on a walk-a-bout in (Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Labour will renege on it’s commitment to give 16 and 17-year-olds the vote because so many of them would vote for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, the party’s newest MP has predicted. Sarah Pochin – who sent shockwaves through the political establishment this month when she won the Runcorn and Helsby by-election – said Mr Farage has “extraordinary” support among teenagers.
Labour pledged in last year’s manifesto to lower the voting age to 16 but Ms Pochin expects the rise of Reform will lead to the plan being scrapped.
“The youth, they flock around him,” she sais. “Out of nowhere on housing estates, you’d get the 16, 17, 18-year-olds [asking], ‘Nigel can we have a selfie?’
“They love him and I found that fascinating because never before in the 10 years I’ve been very active in politics have I come across the youth so engaged, so enthused by a party leader. That is extraordinary.
“I tell you one thing, I think Labour will back right down on giving 16-year-olds a vote because their vote will go to Nigel Farage.”
A Government spokesperson insisted the lowering of the voting age was coming, saying: “As set out in our manifesto, this Government is committed to widening and encouraging participation in our democracy, includes giving 16-17 year olds the right to vote. We’re working with the electoral sector, devolved and local government, and other stakeholders to ensure we implement these changes successfully.”
The Government insists it is intent on lowering the voting age in “good time” ahead of the next general election.
Sir Keir last month told MPs the Government “will definitely get it done”.
Polling by Survation for True North Advisors found that Labour remains the most popular among young voters in the 18-24 age bracket. Thirty-five percent of this group said they would vote for Sir Keir Starmer’s party (when people who did not know how they would vote or would not say were excluded). This compared with 21% backing Reform, 17% saying they would vote Conservative and 15% who support the Greens.
Labour plans to ‘form new Dad’s Army’ as threats to UK rise
Defence Secretary John Healey (Image: Getty)
Labour is planning on introducing a Dad’s Army-style Home Guard to protect key British infrastructure against attack from enemy states and terrorists, according to reports. It is said the plans are being put forward in the Government’s long-awaited Strategic Defence Review (SDR) expected to be published in the coming weeks.
The unit will reportedly be based on the Home Guard set up in the 1940s during the Second World War as a final line of defence against a potential German invasion of Britain. Members were typically men too old or young to serve on the frontline, as well as those deemed unfit or ineligible. The Home Guard today would be made up of thousands of volunteers who would be tasked to safeguard infrastructure such as nuclear power plants, airports and telecommunications sites, The Sunday Times reported.
Members of Britian’s Home Guard in London, August 1940 (Image: Getty)
It is claimed personnel from the unit could also deploy to sensitive sites such as energy stations providing power to major airports.
Heathrow, the UK and Europe’s busiest airport, was closed in March after a fire at a nearby electrical substation halted operations.
While specific details of how the Home Guard will operate is not clear, it is understood the volunteers would be civilians, with local hubs formed around the country, according to The Sunday Times.
Cast of the BBC’s Dad’s Army – a popular comedy show on Home Guard volunteers during WWII
The Home Guard is expected to be structured similarly to the Army reserves and will be separate from existing organisations.
It will likely be used to assist units such as the Civil Nuclear Constabulary which protects British nuclear sites.
The Home Guard plan is reportedly a key part of the SDR which will examine threats facing the UK and how the country must address them.
It is said while there are no fears of an immediate invasion, the review has found Britain’s critical national infrastructure has vulnerabilities from hostile states.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there have been a series of incidents in the Baltic Sea in which power cables, telecom links and gas pipelines have been damaged – many of which have been blamed on Moscow, something Russia has repeatedly denied.
The SDR reportedly calls for the Royal Navy to play a more significant role in protecting such underwater infrastructure, with the Home Guard focusing on sites on land.
Nations such as Denmark, Germany and Sweden currently operate a type of Home Guard.
Dad’s Army was a popular BBC comedy series in the 1960s and 1970s based on Home Guard volunteers during the Second World War.
