What would a society made up only of teenagers look like? In William Golding's 1954 novel Lord of the Flies, a group of teenage boys is stranded on an island. Soon they have turned to violence and greed, and are living in terror of a fictional beast. Their society crumbles almost instantly.

Such books present teenagers as irrationalNot thought through or nonsensical. , emotional and impulsiveActing without thinking much about it. . It may be an unfair depiction. A new survey has asked 2,000 teenagers about their biggest concerns and the results have yielded a wise picture of life as they know it.

Of the 2,000 people aged 13-18 who took part in the survey, nearly half (46%) said that they were worried about knife crime in their local area.

The poll also showed a growing resistance to the internet and social media. More than a third said that social media should be banned for under-16s.

The youths were keen to better regulate online content and 80% agreed that there should be safer internet search functions. Mental health was also a major concern.

There is a stereotype that teenagers are apatheticShowing no interest. . But the biggest political protest movements of the last few years have been headed by young people, from school strikes for the climate to Black Lives Matter. 

And only one in 10 young people aged eight-17 believe that politicians focus on young people's concerns when making decisions.¹

Addressing individual issues is one thing, some say, but it is ultimately representation that we should be striving for. Politicians have no incentiveSomething that motivates you to do something. A reason. to represent teenagers, teenagers claim, because most teenagers cannot vote. Power starts in the ballot box.

And, though William Golding might not approve, we should perhaps start believing in the ability of young people to build a better society.

Is there a solution?

Yes: There is only one way for teenagers to feel heard, and that is for them all to have the right to vote. It does not benefit politicians at all to act on the issues that young people are highlighting unless those young people have some voting power.

No: The issues highlighted by young people in this survey are unfortunate social maladies, but most of the solutions supported by the respondents are entirely impractical and idealistic, such as banning smartphones for under-16s.

Or... The issues that young people are raising now are the issues that voters will be grappling with for the coming decades. Any self-respecting politician should start brainstorming solutions, even if it does not benefit them immediately.