As a 23 year-old living in Britain today, I recognise and identify with the analysis within this important report from HOPE not hate Charitable Trust.

Young people like me have spent much of our lives bearing the impact of austerity and cuts to services as well as facing insecure employment. I myself have been employed on a zero hours contract and have seen the ease with which my friends and I have had our hours changed at the drop of a hat. Instability and uncertainty have marked our lives as young people, yet my generation’s world view is more compassionate, brave and optimistic than those who have gone before us.

This report demonstrates that the majority of young people see a real possibility for change and that we want a stake in our futures. The intelligence, compassion and courage I see from young people across Britain today, particularly around issues such as refugee protection and climate change, gives me real hope for the future. I urge decision makers to listen carefully to the rallying cry of my generation for a fairer, greener world built on the principles of solidarity and compassion.

Nadia Whittome
Member of Parliament for Nottingham East and Honorary President for the British Youth Council