PETER Kyle is leading a campaign to give 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote.

The Hove MP has teamed up with former schools minister Lord Adonis in an effort to create a cross-party coalition to change the voting age.

Mr Kyle said he wanted to deliver a Christmas present for all 16 and 17-year-old currently deprived of a voice at the ballot box.

The Labour MP said he had been inspired by school pupils in his constituency and said it was “wrong” teenagers were denied a voice over the profound changes taking place in the country.

The youth vote, which rose to more than 70 per cent turnout at this month’s election compared to around 40 per cent in 2015, was credited as contributing to Labour’s electoral success.

Mr Kyle said: “We want to get this done by Christmas. We want this to be the biggest Christmas present this country has given young people since the peacetime years after the Second World War.

“We are living in very unstable times so we want to get this done as soon as possible. We don’t know when there will be another election or referendum so we want to get this done in time for Christmas so we are fully prepared for young people to take their rightful place alongside everyone else at the ballot box.”

Mr Kyle and Lord Adonis will bring simultaneous bills to the Commons and the Lords in a matter of days and are working to build a cross-party consensus on the issue.

Mr Kyle said he would approach Conservatives he knew were “passionate” about young people.

As well as lowering voter age, the campaign will also look to bring about automatic voter registration for anyone under 24 and to have polling stations at all sixth form colleges which meet a particular criteria.

Mr Kyle said: “It’s not just about extending franchise, it is about doing everything we can to encourage young people to get involved in politics and the future of our country.

“If we were doing this for party political gain, it would be a very short term gain.

“Things can turn on a dime. The Tory Party is reeling from what just happened at the election and it is already thinking very hard about what it offers young people and how it can engage with them.”

The Labour MP said he had been struck by the political engagement shown by youngsters during his two years as MP.

He said: “In the last couple of years of being an MP, we have been taking very big decisions about the future of the country which will have a profound impact on our economy and ability to travel and work abroad.

“The people who are going to be most affected are fiercely engaged in the issues but are shut out from having a say on them which I think is just wrong.

“I came to that conclusion very soon after becoming an MP and spending so much time in our local schools, talking to young people and listening to them.

“People say young people don’t have enough experience of the world but there are lots of people who lead very localised lives, and that is not a criticism.

“Older people have a worldliness which is important for public debate but there is also room for youthful exuberance and innocence to balance out that debate.”