I think the right to vote should be moved up to 25. I think at the moment, we’ve seen the shift of adulthood go from 18 way into young people’s mid-20s. People aren’t working, they aren’t settling, they aren’t getting on with life, and until we regain adulthood, we should have our right to vote restricted.

Though the voting systems themselves I think could do with a bit of revision, I think 18 years old is likely a happy medium.

While I wouldn’t oppose the age being lowered, I do think there is a certain freedom between having that time to kind of decide how engaged you want to be in politics… … and at 18, when you’re more likely to have finished things like school, and you’re more likely to be, kind of, moving on into your life into a way where you need to feed into the workforce and the future of the society. I think, like, 18 is around about a good age for that.

I don’t know if I have any strong opinions on changing the current situation of 18. I think 18 probably does it. You’re gonna have to pick an age, and all ages have pros and cons, and so maybe just keeping it at 18 is the best way.

But if, you know, a motion was passed to lower it to 16, I certainly wouldn’t campaign against it. I think that the future is for the young, and I think that the future is kind of scary at the moment … … and I think it makes sense that the youth are more invested in making big changes and upsetting the status quo, and I think that we need things to change faster than eventually.

I absolutely feel that we’ve already got it about right when it comes to the age of voting. 18 is absolutely right, 16 is far too young. A lot of 16-year-olds are heavily influenced by what they see on social media.The other day, I just saw a viral tweet stating that Priti Patel had spent £77,000 on her eyebrows! And this is the sort of thing that can kind of be perpetuated by social media. Therefore, 18 years old is about the right age because it means that people have experienced a full education, and they are in a place where they can make more informed decisions.

I think when it comes to voting, it’s difficult because I do sincerely believe in the empowerment of young people in all kinds of ways. However, what we would need to be careful of is the ways that this newfound power to vote actually worked. How much information were they having and are we making sure they’re not being exploited? If the young people are engaged, then there should be ways for them to be involved, whether that’s voting or in other ways. I think the most important thing is to figure out what works for the society you serve.

(End)

• To move up (phrasal verb): to increase in value, number, or amount.
• A shift (noun): a change in position or direction.
• Way (informal, adverb): used to emphasise the amount or degree of something.
• To settle (verb): to go and live somewhere, especially permanently.
• To get on with something (phrasal verb): to start or continue doing something (e.g. work).
• To regain something (verb): to take or get possession of something again.
• To restrict something (verb): to limit the movements or actions of someone.
• Could do with something (idiom): to need or want something.
• Revision (noun): a change that is made to something.
• Likely (adverb): probably.
• A happy medium (noun): a good compromise or balance that avoids any extreme choices.
• To oppose something (verb): to disagree with something or someone.
• Engaged (adjective): involved in something.
• To move on (phrasal verb): to start a new activity.
• To feed into something (phrasal verb): to add to something, making it bigger.
• A workforce (noun): the group of people who work in a company, industry, country, etc.
• Around about (idiom): approximately, roughly.
• To pick something (verb): to select something and not other things.
• Pros and cons (phrase): advantages and disadvantages.
• A motion (noun): a formal suggestion made, discussed, and voted on (often by the government).
• To campaign (against) something (verb): to organise a series of activities to try to achieve (or stop) something.
• Youth (noun): young people considered as a group.
• Invested (adjective): caring about something and wanting it to be successful.
• To upset something (verb): to change or disrupt the usual or expected state or order of something.
• The status quo (noun): the present situation, what is considered normal.
• When it comes to (idiom): used to specify the topic that is being talked about.
• Heavily (adverb): to a very large degree.
• Viral (adjective): used to describe something that quickly becomes very popular on the internet.
• A tweet (noun): a short comment published on the social network previously called Twitter.
• To perpetuate (verb): to cause something to continue.
• Informed (adjective): having a lot of knowledge or information about something.
• Sincerely (adverb): honestly and without lying.
• Empowerment (noun): the process of gaining freedom and power to control what happens to you.
• Newfound (adjective): only recently happening or beginning to exist.
• To exploit something (verb): to use something/ someone unfairly for your own advantage.
• To figure out something (phrasal verb): to understand or find the answer to something.
• To serve (verb): to work for or do your duty for.

In this text, there are different examples of adverbials of probability. We use adverbials of probability to show how certain we are about something. Some common adverbs of probability are:

Certainly, possibly, definitely, maybe, clearly, obviously, perhaps, probably, undoubtedly

Where do adverbs of probability go in a sentence?

Perhaps and maybe come at the beginning of a sentence:

‘Perhaps we’ll be lucky and there won’t be any traffic.’   ‘Maybe you’ll find your keys at the office!’

Other adverbs of probability usually come before the main verb:

‘Are you probably going to come?’   ‘We definitely played tennis last year!’   ‘I certainly support your choice.’

We usually use adverbs of probability after the present or past simple of the verb ‘be’.

‘He’s obviously disappointed about it.’   ‘We were undoubtedly the best at English!’   ‘It’s possibly my favourite.’

Adverbs of probability are normally used between an auxiliary or modal verb and the main verb (if there is one in a sentence):

‘We have possibly watched this before.’   ‘I would certainly go if I could.’   ‘We can probably find some time later.’

We can also use some adverbs of probability at the start of a sentence for emphasis:

‘Obviously, it’s a complicated situation.’   ‘Clearly, she needs to think about it.’   ‘Certainly, I missed an opportunity.’ 

Where can’t adverbs of probability go in a sentence?

Never put an adverb between a verb and its direct object:

‘He’s played probably tennis before’   ‘He’s probably played tennis before’

Don’t put an adverb between a verb and a gerund or infinitive with ‘to’:

‘She needs to clearly think about it.’   ‘(Clearly,) She (clearly) needs to think about it.’

Examples in the text:

• I think 18 years old is likely a happy medium: ‘likely’ is used here after the verb ‘be’ to mean probably, suggesting the speaker is not certain.
• … when you’re more likely to have finished things like school: the comparative adverb ‘more likely’ is used here after the verb ‘be’, before the infinitive clause ‘to finish’.
• I think 18 probably does it: ‘probably’ is used here before the main verb ‘does’, suggesting the speaker is not certain.
• … maybe just keeping it at 18 is the best way: ‘maybe’ is used here at the start of the clause.
• I certainly wouldn’t campaign against it: ‘certainly’ is used here before the auxiliary verb ‘would’ for emphasis, making the speaker’s opinion stronger.
• I absolutely feel that we’ve already got it about right: ‘absolutely’ isn’t an adverb of probability, but is an adverb of degree or emphasis, used before the main verb to make the speaker’s opinion more emphatic.

https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/english-grammar-reference/adverbials-probability

https://www.englishpodcastscollected.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/BBC-Sounds-At-what-age-should-you-be-able-to-vote.pdf

https://www.englishpodcastscollected.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/BBC-Sounds-At-what-age-should-you-be-able-to-vote.docx