Thank you for writing to me about your manifesto for changes for youths. In the UK today, young people often get a raw deal and I wholeheartedly support initiatives to improve the lives of young people in the UK. 

The Liberal Democrats are the only party that take youth issues seriously. Our policies include:

Lowering the voting age to 16. The Liberal Democrats have long supported the right to vote and stand for election from the age of 16.

Support a national youth transport card that offers young people a third off public transport fares. Liberal Democrats believe in public transport: it’s part of a fair society and the best way to cut carbon emissions from transport without trying to limit people’s opportunities to travel. We are different because we are the only party to have identified real money to allocate to improvements in public transport. We will cut rail fares by renegotiating the deals made with the train companies. We will improve bus services by giving local people more control over fares and routes. And we will use the tax system to reduce carbon emissions from transport.

Create an equal national minimum wage for everyone over 16. Liberal Democrats are committed to Making the Minimum Wage fair and setting it at the same level for everyone. It is appalling that you can be paid less simply because of your age.

End child poverty in the UK by 2020. We are committed to this. More than a third of children in poverty live in a house where someone works yet they are still trapped in poverty so we will rebalance the tax system to ensure that work pays and provides a means for families to improve their lives. We will also spend an extra £2.5bn on schools, guaranteeing them the money they need to support children who are struggling. It will be targeted at schools taking on children who need more help and can be used to cut class sizes and provide more one-to-one tuition – to give every child a fair start in life.

Invest in comprehensive mental health services for young people. The NHS is facing increasing pressure on vital services: to ensure these services aren’t cut even though budgets are tight, we will cut waste and re-invest every penny in frontline services, such as mental health services for young people.

I hope these policies address some of the issues you have raised in your manifesto.  If you require any further information, please do not hesitate contact me.

Yours sincerely,

Chris Lucas"