Alan Milburn’s report on Neets, published in May, was one of the most damning comments on the welfare state I have read. It described a new generation of a million mostly poor Britons now encouraged to fare worse, not better, than their parents. This means, said Milburn, that “the great British promise” – the advance of generations – is being broken.
A sizeable chunk of the population is going backwards. The number of young people not in education, employment or training – one in eight of all 16- to 24-year-olds – is rising fast and will be 1.25 million by 2030. More than 80% of them claim to want to find a job, education or training.
A third even have “good GCSEs”, but 44% of them are on state benefits, now costing £8.1bn. Many of them suffer from anxiety and other disabilities, according to the NHS. The number of young people with special educational needs has doubled in 10 years.
Mental ill-health is bordering on pandemic levels. The Neets crisis is a gift to politicians. There is always someone else to blame.
The most obvious target is Labour’s curiously punitive treatment of small businesses and casual or unskilled jobs. Curbing zero-hours contracts and proposing first-day job security are measures that seem almost targeted at keeping Neets out of work. But the complaint ringing ever louder from employers is that young people leaving school are unready for work and life in the real world.
August’s Department for Work and Pensions survey of employers’ views is an indictment. More than 90% thought the education system should offer more vocational pathways to young people. They pleaded for the young to understand personal motivation, teamwork and time management.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
