Economic insecurity is hollowing out our civic life
Published: 1 May 2026
Commentary
Almost a year ago, former Prime Minister Gordon Brown used the inaugural John Smith Memorial Lecture to warn that our civic infrastructure was breaking down partly due to economic decline over the past decades.
This month, the UK Youth Poll 2026 delivers more evidence to support that claim, especially in regard to the younger generation which feels the strain of financial worries considerably.
Just like last year, finances are at the top of young people’s concern. Four of their top five issues are focussed on income, housing and the basics of life. Only 36% believe that their lives will be better than that of their parents’ – a drop by almost half since last year’s poll. In our focus groups, these worries were discussed again and again, highlighting just how widespread the issue is: “If I compare my earnings with my dad’s in the 70s… he could afford a house. It’s a far-off reality for me.” (woman, 29)
The disillusionment and despair that comes with these financial worries is overwhelming and leads to a perceived breakdown of the social contract. Many young people feel they are doing what they’re supposed to do – they study hard, they go to university, they get good grades and work hard to graduate and then – well, then they are hoping for that promised good job and good life that are supposed to be the reward for their struggles and financial investment.
To their dismay, this dream doesn’t always crystalise. One woman told us: “I’ve been working outside of uni for eight years and I have a degree and I’m still struggling to get a job.” (woman, 29) It’s no wonder young people feel like something is broken. The system they trusted if they only did the right things isn’t keeping the promise it made. “A growing sentiment among me and peers is why should we even try to uphold a social contract that will never work for us in the future? We will never be able to own homes or even retire at this rate.” (man, 22)
The effects reverberate through their views on politics and civic life in general. Whereas a majority see politics as something that is relevant to their lives, they do not perceive the political space as one that is safe and trustworthy. 30% do not trust politicians and only 25% feel as though their generation is being treated fairly. To top it off, even if they were keen to get politically involved, they do not feel ready to do so: only 16% agree that their schooling has prepared them well for civic engagement. The John Smith Centre believes that some form of formal civic education should be part of the curriculum to ensure the country’s youngest citizens feel equipped to build and expand on their knowledge to become active, not passive, citizens.
Another factor adding to the feeling of being unprepared and unsafe in our public square comes down to the ‘how’ and the ‘where’ of public debate. A lot of our public discourse has moved online, onto social media and other micropublishing platforms. In some ways, this is a great democratisation of information access as well as sharing. But it also comes with a great deal of uncertainty in terms of the reliability and bias of news that is consumed. Social media is the top source of news for young people with 61%. At the same time, those channels are also among the least trusted news sources (BBC: 50% trustworthy compared to TikTok: 22%, Instagram: 22%, X: 21%).
In addition, the toxicity often encountered on social media (by no means exclusively so, however), makes young people reluctant to speak their mind and share their opinions. 49% state they avoid talking about politics because they worry about how others might react. This is hugely problematic: political opinion is just that, opinion, and the fear of being ‘wrong’ or trying to get it ‘right’ stifles constructive, fruitful debate that could help us broaden our horizon and find compromises.
Despite all this, young people DO care about the state of our politics and they DO want to get involved. Over three quarters have engaged in some form of political or communal activity, whether that’s signing a petition, advocating for an issue on social media or trying to change someone’s mind on an issue. Some of the top activities are focused on online engagements or individualistic ones. Communal and offline ones are less frequently used. That is a problem as most online activities are facilitated/conducted on privately owned platforms whose priority is not to encourage respectful, trustworthy engagement but making a buck through garnering as much attention as possible. Private companies and individuals already have too much power in our society today and moving a considerable part of our public square and debate into their control is dangerous.
All these factors contribute to a public square that is not inviting, safe or constructive. It can’t thrive if one generation believes it is playing a rigged game and constantly battling for survival. Gordon Brown was right when he posited: “And if you combine these two things: responding to financial disappointment and responding to the breakdown of civic society, we can go back to what John Smith talked about: a good economy depends on a good society and a good society depends on a good economy.” The last findings of the UK Youth Poll 2026 prove just that.
The problem is not that young people don’t care, it’s that they don’t feel like the public square is working for them. Worse, they feel it’s working against them. The online public square especially is one that is permanently open, poorly or not at all moderated, and can be a punishing place to be. Instead of asking why some young people don’t participate it might be better asking why they would risk it? From where they are sitting, it’s not so much that they have given up on participating in the public square or don’t care about it, it’s that the public square has given up on them.
First published: 1 May 2026