Nicole finds living in Britain “quite a depressing thing”. “I don’t really like the UK, to be fair,” she said.
The 22-year-old dancer has already lost two friends to Australia and her sister was due to go last month. “They just say the work-life balance is so much better [and] that people are so much friendlier and happier, they go to work, they spend time with their kids. They have family time.”
Nicole joins us on a wet and dark evening in Birmingham to discuss her views on life in Britain. Perhaps we caught her on a bad day. At other times, she said, she considered herself privileged to live in a peaceful country, but then admitted she wouldn’t fight for Britain if that ever changed.
“I can’t kill anyone, I’d probably cry,” she said. “War is just not for me. I don’t agree with it either, to be honest, it’s just stupid. I think killing people, it’s like, why are you doing that?”
Nicole had, like many of those in the groups, deleted her social media accounts and strongly believed the lives of young people had been permanently blighted by their impact. “Nowadays there’s such a massively high standard, like, I want this, I want that,” she said. “Social media is the worst thing ever, it’s practically a drug. It’s horrific and you go on TikTok and you see: ‘Oh look at my amazing life’.”
She was one of 20 young people across Birmingham and Wakefield to take part in focus groups hosted by the opinion consultancy Public First for The Times. Together they painted a picture of a generation anxious about its future.
Some concerns harboured by these young people were similar to those you would expect to find in Britain across all age groups: the cost of living, local transport and crime, long NHS waiting lists and antisocial behaviour.
But when it came to topics such as the impact of social media, the provision of mental health support and racism, the generational experience was distinct.
Chloe, a 27-year-old carer from Wakefield, said she knew five people who had died by suicide last year alone. “It’s just ridiculous,” she said. “People ask for help. I’ve been fortunate recently to be able to talk to people I know and have that support there, but obviously there are a lot of people who might not have the confidence to go and ask for help, or might not have the support there.”
There was, however, one area in which these young people held diverging views. In YouGov polling for The Times and Public First, only 41 per cent said they were proud to be British.
Asked if they were proud, young people in the focus groups were also divided. Some, like Nicole, were hesitant about their loyalty to Britain: “I’m not massively proud in the sense that I would want to stay living here.” Multiple participants spoke of attempting to hide their national identity when on holiday.
The Times Generation Z survey
Kate, a 22-year-old student from Pontefract, West Yorkshire, said she felt embarrassed when she went to other countries. “I sort of try to be quiet because I don’t want people to know where I’m from.”
Becky agreed with her, saying there were “more bad parts than there are good”. “I think the government is the main problem. It’s meant to be the backbone of the country but they just cause more problems. Whoever gets in, they all seem to make as much of a mess of it as each other. I think it’s worse than it was 20 years ago — cost of living, mental health, NHS, support system, the government and in general.”
Not everyone felt this way. Joel thought there were reasons to feel proud. “I think on certain aspects yes, others no. People have mentioned the stereotypical nature of Brits abroad. I try to distance myself but then, like, on sport and other cultural stuff [I’m proud].”
The 27-year-old engineer, also from Pontefract, was perhaps the most optimistic participant in the focus group. He organised a walking group during Covid, enjoyed working from home so that he could exercise after work and considered Britain more inclusive and filled with more opportunities than it was when his parents were his age.
Others insisted they felt unambiguously proud. Mason, 28, thought those who don’t shouldn’t even be in the country. He said: “I feel like a lot of Brits, especially my generation, have a problem with being British. It’s like they’re against being British, there’s a lot of that going on. But I just think if that’s how you feel, then leave.”
Nathan, 27, said he felt proud even though he felt the general quality of life in Britain had declined. “It’s my background, it’s how I’ve been raised,” he said. Like others in the group, he thought England’s football tradition was a key factor for national pride.
Nathan said he would also be happy to fight for Britain in a war, another topic these young people were divided on. “Especially Remembrance Sunday just gone past,” he said, speaking in November, “looking back at past sacrifices.”
Some said it would depend on the cause, while others admitted candidly that it would depend on whether everybody else signed up to fight.
However Ben, an 18-year-old student, put it simply: “I don’t really see what’s in it for me. It would have to be a good incentive.”
There were some positive responses when both groups were asked whether they were happier than their parents at the same age. Many said Britain was more inclusive than it used to be and while housing costs were often prohibitively high, some were still confident they would end up better off than their parents.
Elisha, a 20-year-old student, said her parents moved to Britain when they were very young and have worked in a shop for most of their lives. She said she was in a better financial position and was confident about the future. “Me and my brother always say this, we’re aiming for more.”
