It seems somewhat counterproductive to emphasise the importance of education during our upbringing, yet in decisions that impact our future, minimal effort is exerted to encourage us to take an interest in politics. The youth vote was widely underrepresented during the referendum which ultimately reflected the final result given that a mere 64% of people aged 18-24 voted (Ipsos 2016); as a remainer myself, it is pleasing to see that 75% of people within this age bracket supported Britain remaining in the EU, however, this pales in comparison to the older generations whom cast their vote in droves whereby 65-74-year-olds were represented by 74% of people within the age bracket, 61% of which voted to leave the EU (Ipsos 2016). Herein lies the startling issue: needless to say, our voice is being ignored, it has become white noise, drowned out by older generations. Even the 11% upswing in youth vote between the 2015 and 2017 general election was overwhelmed by the 70% of voters in the 55 and over demographic (Ipsos 2016).

As a generation, we are going to be the biggest sufferers of a post-Brexit Britain, one that adds multiple concerns to an already concerning future that includes the housing crisis and lack of employment opportunities. What is being fuelled here is political apathy, a sense of disinterest that does zero favours for democracy in which voter turnout is minimal and can further the dishonesty already shown by politicians such as their ‘promise’ on delivering £350m funding to the NHS (DeLuca 1995).

Fig.1. Homeownership among 16-24 year-olds have reduced by over 20% in the last 27 years (Unheard 2018)

What this graph indicates is a shift from ownership, to renting properties, particularly among younger age groups which insecurity with our living situation. Already there has been an explosion in house prices above income growth which has robbed young generations from, not only our capacity to buy a home, but our autonomy; the ability to make life-affecting decisions without interference is compromised because of the lack political assertiveness directed to the youth (Sensen 2012). To add insult to injury, as a generation, there is potential to lose as much as £108k in earnings by 2050 pending the outcome of the deal we receive from the EU (Halligan 2018).

Society has become individualised, no doubt, which we have embraced by creating our own identities and have the courage to believe in ourselves (Beck and Beck-Gernsheim 2001); this, however, I believe, is a time for the collective. A time for us to use our collective youthful voices to challenge to uncertainty being unravelled in front of our very eyes. This extends to job opportunities or lack thereof; with projections from CBI showing there will be one million fewer jobs in 2020 than there are now (Guardian 2018), it further undermines us in how our future and the impact Brexit has but also stresses the need to act upon this.

"We are the youth and we have a right to speak. We are completely powerless right now."

No single issue will affect young people as much as Brexit. To deny them a #FinalSay would be a betrayal – and it may break their trust in us for a generation.pic.twitter.com/D7KO9EjYcL

— David Lammy (@DavidLammy) January 11, 2019

 “Back in their day, if you went to university I think it was seen as like a big thing, you know like you had to be quite smart and everything. But nowadays I think everyone pretty much goes to university, and I think doing your Masters is more like getting a degree back then if you know what I mean?”  – Green 2017

This is the opinion of an individual who has completed their university degree, an individual currently stifled by a shortage of employment opportunities. The perception that having a better education equals a better job/lifestyle is not causal, rather the growing belief that qualifications in today’s society is redundant. In a society that we have benefited from in terms of the ‘increasing freedom and choice in the context of education’, there is a sense that job opportunities remain limited (Green 2017) which echoes our undermining position in society. What incentive is there for attending higher education institutions if we fail to get the opportunities to showcase our intuition? Seems counterproductive to me.

Fig.2. Graph showing the occupational change in thousands between 2000-2014 and forecasted employment 2014-2024 (UK Commission for Employment and Skills 2015)

The results from the table above do not bode well for our aspirations to achieve esteemed positions in the future. Reduced opportunities in an ever-increasing concentrated labour market will leave thousands of unemployed youths unable to climb on the occupational ladder which will further impact the already shown political apathy. Again, this goes back to the belief that as a demographic this is a time of the collective and the need to voice our concerns about the future implications Brexit has upon us.

What confidence do we have with the government? The political class’ failure to engage us and sustain interest has left us ignored and alienated to the extent that it has exposed the already widening gap in aspirations between the generations; a gap that can be traced back to 2010 with the cancellation of Education Maintenance Allowance. As an A-level student at the time of the referendum, it was both inconceivable and criminal that the day the British public cast their vote coincided with examinations taking place on the same day, which, however interpreted, devalued our education and our right to vote.

I want to feel hopeful for a promising tomorrow whereby we are immersed and invested in decisions affecting our lives. When all is said and done, a ‘better’ Britain starts with us

Bibliography

Beck, U. and Beck-Gernsheim, E. (2001) Individualization: institutionalized individualism and its social and political consequences. London: SAGE

DeLuca, T (1995) The Two faces of Political Apathy. Philadelphia: Temple University Press

Green, A (2017) The Crisis for Young People. Basingstoke: Palgrave McMillan

Halligan, T (2018) Home truths – Part I: The UK housing crisis in six graphs. [BLOG]. Unheard. Available at: https://unherd.com/2018/04/home-truths-part-i-uk-housing-crisis-six-graphs/ (Accessed 14 February 2019)

Jackson, D., Thorsen, E., Wring, D. (2016) EU Referendum Analysis 2016: Media, Voters and the Campaign http://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/28759/1/PubSub6174_Henn.pdf (Accessed 14 February 2019)

Sensen, O (2012) Kant on Moral Autonomy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

The Guardian (2018) CBI Cuts Forecast for UK Economic Growth as Brexit Concerns Linger. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/jun/08/cbi-cuts-forecast-uk-economic-growth-brexit-concerns-eu (Accessed 16 February 2019).

UK Commission for Employment and Skills (2015) Working Futures. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/543301/WF_Headline_Presentation_v3.pdf (Accessed 16 February 2019).