THE SNP plan to extend the right to stand for election to 16 and 17-year-olds.
In a move that would set Scotland's parliament and councils apart from Westminster and English local authorities, Nicola Sturgeon's party want to lower the age limit for candidacy in a bid to deliver greater diversity in politics, according to The Sunday Times.
It is expected to receive cross-party support and, if agreed, it would mean the upcoming council elections will be the last time 16 and 17-year-olds are barred from standing and they would be able to win a seat in Holyrood in 2026.
It became legal for 16-year-olds to vote in Scotland in the independence referendum but the voting age for Westminster polls remains at 18.
SNP MP Mhairi Black, who became the youngest politician in the House of Commons when she won the Paisley and Renfrewshire South seat in 2015, has backed the idea insisting it will ensure young people are not left out of vital decision-making.
She said: "Our politics is always improved by having a diverse group of people in office.
"Young people are constantly left out of the conversation, and one way to ensure that stops happening is to have young people sitting at the table."
Lowering the age limit would also put Scotland at odds with other countries such as Italy, where the president must be at least 50, while in the United States you must be at least 35 before being able to serve as president.
Although Black is supportive of the plan, she has warned it will not be without its difficulties.
"Being elected young comes with a unique set of additional challenges that the typical newly-elected guy in his 50s does not face," she added.
"People expect you to be stupid and they expect you to smile as you're being patronised. If more young people stand and get elected, that will change."
SNP MSP Emma Roddick, who at age 24 is Holyrood's youngest parliamentarian, added: "Young people have so much to contribute to our politics and they have the biggest stake in ensuring we make the right decisions for their future.
"We are all served better by more diverse, representative parliaments and councils so bringing the age of elected members to the same as voters is completely logical."
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