Panel advises lower voting age, threshold

WELLINGTON: A sweeping review of the country’s electoral system is recommending the voting age be lowered to 16, a 3.5% party threshold and a public referendum on a longer parliamentary term.

An independent panel of legal experts has been considering public submissions on nearly every aspect of electoral law, commissioned by former justice minister Kris Faafoi last year.

After 58 public meetings and more than 1700 submissions, it reported a swathe of draft recommendations to make electoral laws ‘‘fairer, clearer and more accessible’’.

‘‘There have been piecemeal changes to electoral law over many years, including some recently, but this review is an opportunity to step back and look at the bigger picture,’’ panel chairwoman Deborah Hart said.

The draft recommendations include.—

■ Lowering the voting age for general elections to 16 and extend overseas voting rules.

■ Extending voting rights to all prisoners, not just those sentenced to less than a threeyear jail term.

■ Holding a referendum on extending the parliamentary term from three to four years.

■ Lowering the party vote threshold from 5% to 3.5% and abolishing the coattail rule.

■ Restricting political donations to registered voters, rather than organisations, and capping them at $30,000 to each party and its candidates per electoral cycle while reducing the amount that can be anonymously donated.

■ Requiring the Electoral Commission to give effect to the Treaty of Waitangi.

The interim report will undergo a second round of public consultation until July 17 before a report to the Government is finalised in November.