We took seven young people into the political party conferences: Here is what we learned

When we began planning our events for this year’s party conferences, we knew we didn’t want to stick to the usual format. If you’ve never been to a political party conference, the fringe events are where the real conversations happen, packed with panel discussions featuring MPs and policy experts. We’ve taken part in many of these panels over the years, but this time, we wanted to try something a little different.

As part of our mission to amplify younger voices, explore how misinformation has affected them, and hear what action they want to take, we knew it was time to hand over the mic. We wanted them to lead the conversation and ask the questions that matter most to them. So, we teamed up with two partner organisations, Shout Out UK and UK Youth, and set the plans in motion.

What, When, Where

At each party conference, we hosted a panel made up of an active group of young people, ranging in age from 15 to 25, alongside policymakers ready to answer their questions. At Labour Conference, we were joined by four MPs:

• Jim McMahon, Former Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution
• Peter Swallow, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Schools, Learning and Assessment
• Jacob Collier, Labour MP for Burton & Uttoxeter
• John Slinger, Labour MP for Rugby
  
  

At the Conservative conference, we welcomed three shadow ministers:

• Dr Ben Spencer, Shadow Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology
• Dr Luke Evans, Shadow Parliamentary Under Secretary (Health and Social Care)
• Paul Holmes, Shadow Parliamentary Under Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
  
  

What did the young people ask?

By handing over the microphone to young people, we gave MPs no heads-up of what to prepare and no advance notice of the questions. The topics raised were wide-ranging: from devolution and homelessness, to tackling misinformation, addressing extremism, and exploring what it really means to lower the voting age safely. The conversation also delved into how to better engage young people in politics, and how MPs can use their social media platforms more effectively.

Here are just a few of the highlights.

Votes at 16

With the government planning to lower the voting age to 16 through the upcoming Elections Bill, the question of how to ensure young people are prepared to vote sparked significant discussion. Ahead of the debate, our youth panel voiced strong support for the change, but stressed the need for educational reform to accompany it.

During the panel discussion, MPs shared differing perspectives. Peter Swallow MP emphasised the importance of equipping young people with the right “skills” to help them feel confident in exercising their vote. In contrast, Conservative MP Paul Holmes expressed skepticism, suggesting that most young people were not in favour of the change and criticising the government's messaging around the age of majority as inconsistent. Mr Holmes also flagged that education was lacking in this space. For Jim McMahon, introducing votes at 16 has been a long-standing goal, having first proposed the change in 2017 through a private members’ bill.

At Full Fact, we have put out a series of proposals on what more can be done via the Elections Bill to ensure that misinformation is tackled in elections. This includes supporting young people with effective methods to separate the reliable and evidence-based from the false and misleading. As Shout Out UK and the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Political and Media Literacy highlighted, “the success of this franchise extension is inextricably linked to the robust implementation of Political and Media Literacy education.”

Combatting misinformation 

In 2024, the World Economic Forum identified misinformation and disinformation as the biggest risks facing the world. It was clear from our panels that both the young people and the MPs also felt concerned. Jim McMahon MP, who until recently was a government minister, made it clear that he felt “we need to do more on misinformation.”

Jacob Collier MP highlighted the real world harm that misinformation can cause and raised the story Full Fact had shared in a case study many months ago. He was clear, what happens offline can have real world consequences and praised Full Fact for our quick work in this space in countering misinformation online. 

One young participant who attended both conference events highlighted the recent House of Lords Digital and Communications Committee Report on Media Literacy, in which Full Fact provided evidence. She challenged the MPs to consider what more could be done to improve media literacy. For all MPs, enhancing media literacy was seen as an essential accompaniment to lowering the voting age. 

What’s next?

As we continue to campaign for more society-wide protections against misinformation, Full Fact will be taking the concerns raised by young people to more policymakers and officials. Above all, we are committed to ensuring that young people remain at the forefront, driving the decisions that shape their future.