Barring a complete change of fortune, the Conservatives are on course for electoral oblivion. Many will put this down to Prime Minister Liz Truss’s (mis)handling of the economy since she and her crew of swashbuckling free marketeers commandeered the ship, but in truth this has simply accelerated the journey into an inevitable iceberg. The pendulum of public opinion swings endlessly, and after 12 years in power the Tories were always going to run out of gas, especially at current prices. But if, as many are starting to predict, the Tories face a good ten years in the wilderness, they will have to do some serious soul searching. A complete rebrand is needed to undo years of foundational decline, stemming primarily from a desertion of young voters.
The rhetoric espoused by some Conservative MPs about struggling families cutting back on takeaways and subscription services to cope with soaring energy costs this winter will be remembered by voters. Young people especially have spent years being told to stop buying Starbucks and Dominos to save themselves some dosh. But, after tax, rent, student debt payments, travel costs, and other essential monthly expenditures, the young aren’t left with much. Do you really blame us for spending what little we have left to distract ourselves from the depressing reality that we’ve basically got to live like a 17th century puritan on a diet of oats to have a hope of long term financial stability?
Speaking to peers of a similar age to mine (mid 20s), it becomes apparent that no young person even considers saving for a mortgage as a realistic option. While researching for this piece I discovered the jolly news that the average deposit on a property for a first time buyer in the UK is around £60,000. In the capital the average is almost double. And with mortgage rates having spiked post-Hurricane Kwasi, the likelihood of most of my peers and I getting onto the property ladder before the age of 35 is equivalent to that of Liz Truss serving a decade in office. Not impossible but I wouldn’t bet my house on it at the minute. Oh wait, I don’t have a house to bet…