By Dr Elisabeth Loose.
Tomorrow, we will finally learn about the much-anticipated details of the government’s 2025 budget.
In light of this, we have dug into our Youth Poll 2025 data to bring together young people’s views on financial matters – personal and social. The findings are not only important to consider in themselves, but also due to their far-reaching consequences for young people’s sense of their place in politics – something any government should concern itself with. First, let’s look at some of the data.
One thing that crystallised throughout our engagement with young people was the priority and emphasis on bread-and-butter issues – young people today struggle mostly with being able to make ends meet, whether that’s housing costs, affording food and bills, or finding a job that allows them to live independently.
When asked what they thought the most important issues facing the UK are today, the top three answers were ‘Inflation and the cost of living’ (41%), ‘Healthcare’ (37%) and ‘Housing affordability’ (32%). Incidentally, when asking what the biggest contributors to them feeling nervous, anxious, or on edge are, very similar top answers are given: ‘Financial worries’ (37%), ‘Work pressure’ (23%) and ‘Job insecurity or unemployment’ (20%).
Two focus group respondents stated:
“It feels like you’re constantly being punished and penalised just for being young. Everything is going up and out of reach.”
“You get a lot of people in their 60s saying ‘why don’t you move out?’ but the truth is that housing nowadays costs a small fortune. That wasn’t the case when they were younger.”
Reversely, and perhaps unsurprisingly, when asked what would make respondents happier right now, the top two answers are ‘Higher wages or financial stability’ (41%) and ‘Affordable Housing’ (27%). 16% would also like to see ‘Improved job security’ which should not come as a surprise considering that 62% think that it is difficult to find a job after finishing education.
The last couple of years have increased financial pressures on the whole population, so why is it important to highlight especially how the younger generation is struggling under these pressures? Firstly, a society should be measured by how well it provides for its youngest and those with fewest resources, which – generally speaking – those between the ages of 16-29 fall into. Everyone, especially those who are just starting their lives, deserve to live free from existential financial anxiety.
But that’s not all. We have found other aspects that are related to someone’s level of financial stability. Specifically, those young people who are poorer, out of work and less educated feel less of a personal say in society compared to those who are wealthier, in work and better educated. For example, young people in work agreed by a large majority that their vote can make a difference in the local area or region they live in, by 71% to 25%. Among those who aren’t looking for work or on long-term sick leave, only 48% agreed while 33% disagreed.
Life chances – education, work status and income – appear to be a key driver for young peoples’ feelings towards the country, towards themselves and on issues such as immigration. In that sense, the younger generation is divided between the haves and the have-nots – with the consequences that follow. As my colleague Eddie Barnes wrote in our Youth Poll report: that “sense of disengagement feeds through into what might be termed an ‘agency gap’ between these groups. One – better educated, wealthier and in work – feels strongly they have a personal say in society; the other – less well educated, poorer and out of work – much less so.”
Additionally, young people have told us that their view of politics itself would improve if those issues were tackled properly, something that should be in the self-interest of the government. For example, when asked what would make politics feel more relevant to them, the third highest answer given was ‘government focusing on issues that affect me’ (27%); only ‘Politicians being more open and honest’ (36%) and ‘More young people in leadership roles (27%) were given more emphasis. Similarly, when asked which policy areas, if politicians were to focus on them, would improve young people’s view of politics in the UK more, the top four answers were:
- Affordable housing – 38%
- More investment in the NHS – 36%
- Lower taxes for low-earners – 29%
- Job guarantee for all young people – 26%
Young people would welcome a budget that works for them and eases some of the anxiety they have been feeling over those basic bread and butter issues. Of course, not all these issues are either the current government’s fault neither can they be solved with one budget. But they have been voted into power, with fairly high margins among younger votes. And even if they had not, no society can afford to have a young generation that is pre-occupied by financial anxiety and existential worries. If we want a healthy, thriving, inspired society, we need a young generation that feels secure and safe in their current lives and their future.
So, is the budget going to deliver on that much-needed sense of safety and security? Will we see young people better off financially tomorrow? We will see…
The UK Youth Poll 2025 has been sponsored by Nationwide Building Society.
