Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for the rise in youth unemployment among people aged 16 to 24 in the past 24 months.

This Government will not leave an entire generation of young people behind. For many years, our young people have not had the opportunity and support they deserve. The number of 16- to 24-year-olds in the UK not in education, employment or training (NEET) has risen by 77,000 over the last two years. This is an increase of 62,000 in those who are unemployed, and 15,000 in those who are economically inactive. However, these issues are long-standing. Between 2021-2024, the number of NEET young people rose by 250,000. There are multiple factors that can drive this, including a lack of work experience, mental health and wider economic conditions.

The interim report of the independent review into young people and work led by Alan Milburn, published on Thursday 28^th May, identifies multiple reasons as to why there has been an increase in youth unemployment. This report can be found here: Young people and work: interim report - GOV.UK.

We are committed to tackling the challenges identified in the interim report, and are preparing for the recommendations expected to be published in the second phase of the Milburn review in the Autumn. We are already investing £2.5 billion into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy to support almost one million young people and create up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn over the next three years. Furthermore, our Pathways to Work programme (which will be backed by £1 billion a year of funding by the end of the decade) is building towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and those with health conditions on out of work benefits. Through Pathways to Work, young people with health conditions or disabilities have access to tailored support including help into supported employment through Connect to Work.