A CITY of Edinburgh Councillor is calling on Edinburgh Council to improve provision for “universal political education” among young people.
Young Scottish voters face several barriers to voting, according to Councillor Martha Mattos Coelho, who represents the Liberton / Gilmerton ward, and can often be left feeling disenfranchised and confused by voting systems.
Coelho wants the council to recognise these barriers and allow young people to have universal access to materials about electoral systems, political beliefs and registering to vote.
Coelho acknowledges that young people can receive modern studies tutoring, which will teach them about Scottish and UK politics, but she want to see these materials made available for all young voters.
Coelho’s motion will be decided upon at the meeting of the full City of Edinburgh Council next Thursday at 10am (C) Kim Traynor / Creative Commons
Specifically mentioned is “the amount of false news spread by social media”.
It is hoped that changes from the council to how politics and modern studies in taught at schools could help to combat this misinformation and empower young voters to make informed decisions.
This call is part of a motion by Coelho and the SNP group to next week’s meeting of the full City of Edinburgh Council.
The motion states: “Every school should offer education on political voting systems and political matters to everyone in a way that encourages participation.”
Furthermore, Coelho adds: “Schools should make sure young people are enfranchised by supporting young people to register to vote and encouraging them to participate in democracy.”
This motion vcomes just ahead of the upcoming Holyrood elections this year, in which Members of the Scottish Parliament will be elected.
In Scotland, people 16-years-old and over have had the right to vote since the 2014 Independence Referendum and the 2016 Scottish Parliamentary Election.
If approved, the motion would see a report in one cycle to the Education, Children, and Families Committee outlining how the information and matters discussed in Modern Studies could be made available to all students.
It woukld also see posters designed and placed in secondary schools instructing pupils on how to register to vote.
Schools would also be asked to consider using assemblies and relevant gatherings to raise awareness of the upcoming election and young people’s ability to take part in it.
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