The UK Government has announced their plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to reach a target of net zero. The most notable initiatives include investments in electrical cars and sustainable aviation, as well as expansion of nuclear programmes. IF Student Intern, Hanna Burt, analyses the plan from an intergenerational fairness perspective. Too little, too late… Read more »
Category: Intergenerational fairness
A safe climate is a Human Right – what now?
The United Nations (UN) has declared that access to a sustainable environment is a human right. But as established by IF supporter Alice Bordini-Staden, politicians must take action to ensure that future generations may enjoy this right. IF student intern, Hanna Burt, writes about the suggestions made by Alice and others to combat the intergenerational… Read more »
High rents leave families with unaffordable housing costs
A new report from Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) finds that one million families are paying rents that they cannot afford. Liz Emerson, IF Co-founder, takes a look at the research. 1 million families paying rent they cannot afford According to the JRF research, one million households are paying rents they cannot afford. These are private… Read more »
“There are simply too few of us:” the German federal election and intergenerational politics
Older generations make up an overwhelming majority of eligible voters in the upcoming German federal election. Many young people feel that their interests are being ignored in the three leading parties’ campaigns. IF intern Carlotta Hartmann examines younger generations’ democratic deficit, and what it might mean for policy in the future. Population-ageing leaves young voters… Read more »
National Insurance: young people and lower earners hit the hardest
Yesterday, MPs voted to approve raising employees’ National Insurance Contributions (NICs) by 1.25 percentage points, breaking a key manifesto promise not to raise taxes. While the government marketed the rise as “progressive”, in reality it is an intergenerationally unfair tax reform which will affect younger generations the most. Lizzie Simpson, IF Researcher, explains. A regressive… Read more »
One million children could be missing out on free school meals
New research suggests that 1 million children could be missing out on free school meals. Liz Emerson, IF Co-founder, explains why this is yet another intergenerational unfairness facing younger generations. Free School Meals According to a new report by the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG), in partnership with Birmingham and York Universities, 1 million children… Read more »
Young people, climate change and political power: comparing Germany and the UK
With the upcoming election marking a potential turning point in Germany’s future environmental policy, the country’s demographics give older generations more political power, says Deutsche Welle. If older generations are less concerned about climate change and less supportive of policies to change it, this is disillusioning for those hoping for more ambitious government action against… Read more »
Overqualified and underemployed: a sombre snapshot of the labour market for young people
Graduates are leaving university with scant prospects, feeling let down by policy-makers and waking up to the generational divide. Carlotta Hartmann, IF Intern, investigates the labour market pressures facing young Brits today Graduates feeling let down Young people across OECD countries have been disproportionately affected by the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to… Read more »
“Listen to the science”: strong and rapid action needed in response to IPCC report
On Monday, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a landmark report providing a highly comprehensive review of climate change science. While the report has been described as “code red for humanity”, Melissa Bui asks if world leaders will treat the climate crisis with the same urgency that they treated the pandemic crisis? The… Read more »
National insurance, intergenerational fairness and paying for social care
Robert Ashton looks at how National Insurance could be changed for the better, raising more money to pay for social care without penalising younger generations, many of whom are already paying a greater part of their incomes than previous generations on high rents and student loan repayments. How can we make National Insurance work better… Read more »