Russell Brand has a point about disillusionment with politics, but he is wrong when he says young people shouldn’t vote

Russell Brand’s recent guest editorship of the New Statesman and his accompanying interview with Jeremy Paxman – in which he made the case for not voting – have generated a great deal of debate about the reasons that lie behind political apathy. Here, Jamie Barlett argues that though Brand does have a point about the reasons for political disillusionment, he is wrong to advise young people to opt of voting altogether.