From the housing crisis to mental health and stagnant wages – is Ireland doing enough to keep its young people here?

Today marks the United Nations International Youth Day and on The Anton Savage Show, Luke O'Neill was joined by The National Youth Council of Ireland Director of Policy Paul Gordon to discuss the future of Ireland's young population.

Mr Gordan said this generation of young people is finding it harder than previous generations to live in Ireland.

"It might sound like something every generation says that doesn't know how good they've got it, but the actual metrics kind of bear it out in reality," he said.

"We see a housing crisis obviously that is really squeezing young people ... homeownership among younger people has fallen to two really low rates, and many are just struggling to find availability in the housing market."

Abroad

Mr Gordan said young people who have emigrated "don't always pay to paint a rosy picture about the price of accommodation elsewhere".

"They are saying to their friends and colleagues, well, there's actually housing available," he said.

Mr Gordan said "real wages" are falling in Ireland.

"A young person aged 26, born in the 90s, is earning less at the age of 26 than their counterparts who were born in the 80s or 70s," he said.

"Realistically, unfortunately, what we're seeing is that young people are having a tougher time than previous generations.

"What's different now is that we do have really low levels of youth unemployment compared to the past.

"Now there are opportunities here, they might not be as well paid as people would like but there are opportunities here and unfortunately, they're looking elsewhere."

Mental health

Spunout CEO Ian Power said the average age of people leaving home now is 28.3 years.

"That feeling of maybe not progressing, not having that independence – that's having a big impact on people's sense of self and sense of well-being," he said.

"It's really much more about the quality of life, I think, in terms of why young people are perhaps looking at other places.

"You might spend the same amount of money on the cost of the accommodation [abroad], but actually the quality of it is better."

Job insecurity

Mr Power said job insecurity is also causing a rise in anxiety among young people.

"Jobs may be better paid, but they're not actually as secure perhaps as they were in the past," he said.

"There's stagnant wages in a lot of sectors.

"Especially in healthcare, for example, you know, the working conditions can be better.

"You can see why a lot of young people are going away to Australia and Canada and other places to work in conditions that are going to be better for their health and well-being."

Education

A third of working graduates under 35 are working in jobs that do not require their qualifications, according to Luke O'Neill.

Mr Gordan said Ireland is losing its qualified people to other countries.

"As a nation, we invest in young people through education and unfortunately, it's a net loss if we have qualified people leaving the country to go elsewhere because they simply can't afford accommodation here," he said.

"Young people under 25 are far more likely to be on lower pay [and] on temporary contracts.

"We really need to address these fundamental issues."