Those angry baby boomers who want to Leave

Flip Chart Rick looksat the generational divide in the EU referendum. Support for Brexit peaks in the 65-74 group, but is high in the 55-64 and 45-54 groups. [1] People in this ‘baby boom’ generation have on average seen rising prosperity, both in terms of private and public goods, over a period in which we have been part of the EU. If they own a house, they have seen its price rise substantially. They have pensions younger generations could only dream about. Rick asks why is this generation so angry, but you could equally ask why are they so ungrateful? As one former Prime Minister, who tried to join the EU [2] but was turned down, might have said: relative to their parents or children this generation never had it so good.

But is support for Brexit really such a puzzle? The last eight odd years have not been so good. Real wages have seen a record fall. Public services, and particularly the NHS on whom pensioners particularly depend, has seen sharp cut backs and in recent years clearly deteriorating services. So people who have known better might naturally ask what has gone wrong.

Now pretty well all of those reading this will think the answer to this question is obvious. It was the financial crisis and austerity. And pretty well all of those reading this will have a university degree, which means you are overwhelming likely to support Remain (source):

But supposing your only sources of information are the tabloid press and the broadcast media. You have been told by your government that funding for the NHS has been protected. The media hardly mention the financial crisis these days. Instead the newspapers you read tell you that the real problem at the moment is the large increase in immigration over the last decade, and this comes from freedom of movement in the EU. Politicians and the media seem to agree that this is a very important problem: immigration is hardly ever described in positive terms, and when it comes to refugees they are seen as a threat. You do not have that much contact with immigrants yourself, but some of the things you read about in the papers … Here is the breakdown of Brexit support by newspaper readership:

Newspaper readers tend to be old: 77% of those who read the Mail are 45+. The old are also the most concerned about immigration. And amidst all the claim and counter claim in the media about the economic effects of Brexit, one point seems blindingly obvious: you cannot control immigration from the EU when you are part of the EU.

[1] Among those 75+ support for Brexit is lower than in any of those groups. Could this be because they were around when Europe was not at peace?

[2] Then called the EEC