French fear for future of children

Survey points to worries about alcohol, drugs and violence but people also say that the days are too short!

FEARS for their children’s future are the No1 concern for French people – with fears for their own futures not far behind.

A survey has shown 91% of people worry about the risks children face from alcohol, drugs and playground violence and say young people are increasingly facing such problems, with 69% of people feeling overwhelmed.

Older people also have fears about dependence – whether their own or their family’s - with four out of five having real fears for their future and one in two saying it is directly concerning them now.

The study, by CSA for Observatoire Axa, asked people what troubled them in their daily lives - 75% replied that the days were too short.

The main problem was household tasks, which most thought took up too much time – with nearly one in three delegating difficult jobs to others or putting them off.

But they also put off decisions on their health, with three in four admitting that they had failed to see the doctor about a health problem as they feared it could disrupt their lives.

One in two people is also looking at whether it is worth moving abroad, with two out of three under-30s being particularly affected.

Single parents and young people had added worries as they had continual fears about job-hunting, housing, administrative tasks and how to manage money.

Fears over the internet centred not on the exposure of young people to pornographic or violent films or games but on how personal data was used online, with 82% saying this was a real concern.