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Young People not in Education, Employment, or Training
Edited by Peter Warrington, 2026-06-14 Speeches following the publication of the Alan Milburn report on young people and work, which revealed that nearly one million young Brits are currently out of education, employment, or training.Former Cabinet Minister Alan Milburn has published an interim report warning of a “crisis of opportunity” facing young people, with almost one million young people in the UK currently not in education, employment, or training (NEET).
Key Quotes:
“Every morning, a million young people wake up in Britain with nothing to do and nowhere to go. This is a disaster for our country, our economy and, worst of all, for all those young people: Labour’s lost generation.” - Helen Whately (Conservative)
“Discussing the rise in NEETs [not in education, employment, or training] in recent years without discussing the actions of the past Conservative Government is rather like staging “Hamlet” without the Prince of Denmark.” - Andrew Western (Labour)
“If we are to fix this crisis of youth unemployment, we need not tweaks, but an overhaul of vocational training and a correction to the Blairite obsession with university, so that fewer young people are scammed by the great university con.” - Suella Braverman (Reform)
“The Minister proudly touts jobs, hiring bonuses, youth guarantees, Government-funded work experience and job placements, but these are all treating the symptoms of the problem. Frankly, it is all a bit old Labour. … Is there anyone on the Government Benches who understands how an economy works?” - Mike Martin (Liberal Democrat)
“[In response to comments on the British work ethic and young people not working] The Milburn review says loud and clear that this is not about a fecklessness in young people, and neither are they proud of not being in education, employment or training. Young people want those opportunities, and it is a failure of the state and the system.” - Andrew Western (Labour)
“The Secretary of State has been caught out telling the devastating truth about Labour MPs: ‘who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others’? That is what Labour MPs really think, and that is what the Government have done. They have put up people’s taxes, spent more on benefits and left hard-working people with less to live off.” - Helen Whately (Conservative)
“This generation of NEETs [not in education, employment, or training] grew up under Tory austerity, suffered the closure of Sure Start centres and finished their education with per pupil funding lower than it was in 2010, and then many of them grew up in poverty. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need a root-and-branch change from what we had under the Conservatives if we are to end the conveyor belt of young people finishing school and going into unemployment?” - Clive Efford (Labour)
“[In response to Suella Braverman’s comments on the university ‘con’] I would not put it quite in the terms used by the right hon. Lady, but jingoistic rhetoric is a feature of her new place in this House.” - Andrew Western (Labour)
“Is it not the truth that Governments just do not respect working-class jobs, like apprenticeships? Since the apprenticeship levy was brought in, the number of starts has dropped by 35% and the number of level 2 starts has dropped by 68%.” - Jim McMahon (Labour)
“With the coming into force of the Government’s Employment Rights Act 2025, the period for dismissal without fault will be reduced from two years to six months. Many employers have told me that this will make them much less likely to employ young people, because they fear that they will not prove themselves in that time period, and that it will be much harder to get rid of them after six months.” - Sir Oliver Dowden (Conservative)
House of Commons Milburn Review Debate - June 2nd 2026
The House of Commons met on Tuesday 2nd June 2026 to hear a statement from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Andrew Western (Labour):
Last week, Alan Milburn produced a powerful report on the crisis of opportunity facing young people. … We are making opportunity for young people a national cause. We have begun with the youth guarantee, more work experience, workplace training and apprenticeships, hiring bonuses for employers who take on young people in regular or apprenticeship roles, and subsidised employment for young people who remain out of work for 18 months. … We have made a good start, but last week’s interim report is a call to action.
The Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Helen Whately (Conservative), was the first to respond to the statement:
Last week, the Secretary of State was only too eager to talk about this report on the telly. Where is he today? … The Secretary of State has been caught out telling the devastating truth about Labour MPs: “who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others”? That is what Labour MPs really think, and that is what the Government have done. They have put up people’s taxes, spent more on benefits and left hard-working people with less to live off. … Every morning, a million young people wake up in Britain with nothing to do and nowhere to go. This is a disaster for our country, our economy and, worst of all, for all those young people: Labour’s lost generation.
Andrew Western (Labour) responded back:
Discussing the rise in NEETs [not in education, employment, or training] in recent years without discussing the actions of the past Conservative Government is rather like staging “Hamlet” without the Prince of Denmark. … That is what matters and it is exactly what this Government are doing: fixing the broken welfare system that we inherited from the Conservative party …
Jim McMahon (Labour) focused on the decline of apprenticeships:
Is it not the truth that Governments just do not respect working-class jobs, like apprenticeships? Since the apprenticeship levy was brought in, the number of starts has dropped by 35% and the number of level 2 starts has dropped by 68%. … why can we not close the gap today by saying that every public sector employer, whether it is the Government, a council, the police service or the NHS, must advertise at the point that young people are leaving school?
The former Deputy Prime Minister, Sir Oliver Dowden (Conservative), warned about the impacts of impending Labour reforms on business hiring confidence:
… With the coming into force of the Government’s Employment Rights Act 2025, the period for dismissal without fault will be reduced from two years to six months. Many employers have told me that this will make them much less likely to employ young people, because they fear that they will not prove themselves in that time period, and that it will be much harder to get rid of them after six months. … can I urge the Minister to look at it again?
The former Home Secretary, Suella Braverman (Reform), argued for a complete shift away from higher education:
Some 70% of graduates say that university just was not worth it—and is it any wonder, when we have seen an increase in low-quality degrees, people coming out with crippling debt, and lower job prospects for graduates? … If we are to fix this crisis of youth unemployment, we need not tweaks, but an overhaul of vocational training and a correction to the Blairite obsession with university, so that fewer young people are scammed by the great university con.
Andrew Western (Labour) hit back at her choice of language:
I would not put it quite in the terms used by the right hon. Lady, but jingoistic rhetoric is a feature of her new place in this House. … this Government’s aspiration is for 66% of young people to be either in higher education or undertaking an apprenticeship.
Clive Efford (Labour) blamed the current crisis on the long-term impacts of public spending cuts:
This generation of NEETs [not in education, employment, or training] grew up under Tory austerity, suffered the closure of Sure Start centres and finished their education with per pupil funding lower than it was in 2010, and then many of them grew up in poverty. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need a root-and-branch change from what we had under the Conservatives if we are to end the conveyor belt of young people finishing school and going into unemployment?
Mike Martin (Liberal Democrat) questioned the economic competence of the Government’s policies:
The Minister proudly touts jobs, hiring bonuses, youth guarantees, Government-funded work experience and job placements, but these are all treating the symptoms of the problem. Frankly, it is all a bit old Labour. The problems are structural ones in the economy to do with investment, taxation and regulation. Is there anyone on the Government Benches who understands how an economy works?
Jim Shannon (DUP) spoke up about the loss of traditional values surrounding work:
The concept of paying our dues, working long hours and bad shifts, and working our way up are principles that founded the British work ethic, but they now appear something to be embarrassed about. What steps can the Minister take with education Ministers and the voluntary sector to train our children from a young age that working hard at any level is something to be proud of, and that not working if they are able to is not a choice that anyone should profit from?
Andrew Western (Labour) challenged this characterisation:
The Milburn review says loud and clear that this is not about a fecklessness in young people, and neither are they proud of not being in education, employment or training. Young people want those opportunities, and it is a failure of the state and the system. …