Teenage pregnancy, alcoholism, juvenile delinquency, absentee parents, soaring rates of drug addiction… Britain is failing.

Over the last twenty years, traditional family values have declined to the point where young adults without guidance marry too early, have children soon after and end up being swamped by the responsibilities of parenthood. The cycle repeats and the problems worsen, impacting on every level of society.

Here, in his first book, Jeremy Kyle argues the need for the firm hand and unconditional love that seems so absent from certain young parents. He questions the morals of those who see having children as something of a career; not least the systems that make it so easy to sacrifice personal ambition in favour of a state-sponsored ride. And he maps out an agenda for change, insisting on the importance of personal responsibility and strong government in ironing out our nation’s many creases.

With all his trademark candour, Kyle writes about the upheavals in his own life – his struggles with gambling, his brother’s drug addiction – alongside the outrageous stories of the people from his often shocking show, to show what can be achieved with a little grit. The result is a hard-hitting look at modern British life that will outrage some, anger others, enliven many, but will no doubt set the debates raging.