Young people lose faith in politicians, but not in democracy, five-year study finds
Politicians remain the UK's most distrusted group, with distrust heavily outweighing trust across five years of polling by My Life My Say and Opinium.
Young people feel the government prioritises the super-rich, while lower earners and ordinary citizens come bottom.
Support for democracy reached a record peak, with nearly six in ten young people (57%) saying they feel their vote matters.
London, United Kingdom, 26 October 2026
Young people's trust in political institutions has steadily eroded over the past five years, even as their support for democracy has strengthened, according to new research tracking 18-to-24-year-olds across the UK. Published jointly by non-partisan charity My Life My Say and strategic insights agency Opinium, the Youth Index Poll: 5 Years On draws on six waves of polling conducted between April 2022 and July 2026. The findings reveal that politicians and the government have consistently ranked as the country's two least trusted institutions across all six waves, with net trust in politicians stuck between -32 and -35 despite changes in leadership.
This distrust is accompanied by a widespread view that the system favours the elite. Across the tracker, 18-to-24-year-olds identify the super-wealthy, business leaders, and landlords as the groups prioritised most by government, while lower earners and "people like you" place bottom. Alongside this political disillusionment, the cost of living has led as the top issue facing young people in every wave, chosen by around three in five respondents, while government performance ratings on affordable housing and secure jobs have slumped to record lows.
Yet young people draw a clear distinction between politicians and the democratic system itself. Support for democracy remained positive throughout the five years of polling, reaching a record high of +53. Across the same period, a majority of 18-to-24-year-olds maintained that their individual vote matters, rising to 57% (net +20) in the latest round of polling.
Melisha John, CEO at My Life My Say said: "Young people’s trust in our political institutions is broken, but that is not down to indifference. It’s the result of a political system that feels out of reach and unsupportive on the issues shaping their daily lives. Young people still believe in democracy, they still believe their vote matters and they are ready to engage. The responsibility now rests with political institutions to listen to these findings, remove the barriers holding this generation back and give them a reason to trust again."
Elliot Richley, Research Manager at Opinium said: "Five years of polling shows a steady
erosion in young people’s confidence in political leaders, regardless of who is in power. What stands out just as clearly in the data, however, is that young people draw a sharp line between individual politicians and the democratic system itself. Trust in politicians may be falling, but support for democracy has strengthened to its highest point since our tracking began."
The full “Youth Index Poll: Five Years On” can be read here - https://www.mylifemysay.org.uk/youthindexpoll