YOUNG people should be forced to vote in the first election after they turn 18 in a bid to reverse declining turnouts, think tank the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said.

The IPPR said requiring first-timers to fill in a ballot paper — with an added “none of the above” option — would foster a lasting desire to have a say.

At the 1970 general election the gap between the proportion of 18-24 year olds and over-65s voting was 18 points but by 2010 it had risen to 32 — with just 44 per cent of the youngest group going to the ballot box, it noted.

And the gap between the richest and poorest socio-economic groups had soared from four points to 23 over the same period, showing there were “clear inequalities of influence between rich and poor at the ballot box.”

IPPR research fellow Mat Lawrence said: “Compulsory voting for first-time voters could help kick-start the habit of a lifetime. Without radical reform, we risk sleepwalking into a more divided democracy.