Mieka Smiles

Local Matters

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BRITAIN'S young people aren't happy. And frankly, is it any wonder? Going to university costs a small fortune and, if young people do take on the almighty debt, a job at the end of it is far from guaranteed. Unemployment has risen again and those in the know are predicting a "youth exodus" with research by the Adam Smith Institute suggesting that a quarter of young Britons are now thinking about emigrating.

But I think by far, the biggest factor in this youth disillusionment is housing. It's a national shame that many are stuck living with their parents into their thirties and beyond. They are unable to put down roots and build a life of their own.

By the time I was 24, my husband and I had bought our first home and our lives were built around it - new friends, weekend projects and, of course, working hard to pay for it all. It gave us responsibility and a stake in society. The problem isn't that we need to build millions more homes, with Labour intent on concreting over the countryside to achieve it. In fact, my own town of Middlesbrough has plenty of boarded-up houses in the centre of town. They stand empty and decaying and drag the whole area down.