The key facts

  • Alan Milburn proposes an 'opportunity guarantee' — a legal duty on the state to provide young people with a route into employment
  • He proposes changing the ratio of spending on benefits to employment support from 25:1 to 2:1
  • Almost a million young people in the UK are neither working nor studying; Prime Minister Burnham gave no commitment to accept the report in full

What the Milburn review proposes

Former Labour minister Alan Milburn, who prepared a major review of the problem of young people who are neither working nor studying, has said that young people should receive a legal guarantee of work, training or employment support. His proposals will be published on Tuesday, and the government is expected to broadly welcome them: a statement in parliament and draft legislation are scheduled for the beginning of next year. Milburn has also previously said that people under 25 should not receive a number of health-related benefits — the personal independence payment (PIP) and the health element of Universal Credit.

Redistribution of spending and the 'opportunity guarantee'

The central proposal is a radical shift in government spending. According to Milburn, 25 times more is spent on benefits for young people than on employment support, and this ratio should change to two to one. This means a noticeable reduction in payments and a significant increase in funds for training, education and other forms of support. Milburn acknowledges that some young people will lose benefits, but believes the system should help people move into work rather than keep them dependent on social payments. By his estimate, the state already spends £22 billion a year on economically inactive young people, and this money should be spent differently.

How the legal guarantee should work

The second key idea is an 'opportunity guarantee': a legal duty on the state to provide a young person with a route into employment — a job, an internship, a training place or, possibly, treatment that enables work. Milburn compares the mechanism to the duty of local councils to house the homeless or care for children without guardians. He stresses that previous employment programmes were temporary, whereas a permanent legal provision is needed to solve the long-standing problem of young people not in employment, education or training (Neet). According to the Office for National Statistics, there are almost a million such young people in the UK. Milburn clarified that the guarantee should not allow a teenager to sue the prime minister over the 'wrong' job — it is precisely about a legal duty on the authorities, probably through councils or mayoral offices.

Reaction of the government and the opposition

Prime Minister Andy Burnham called the forthcoming report a 'turning point' in the approach to supporting young people, but refused to give a 'blanket assurance' that he would adopt it in full. Asked about large upfront costs, he replied that the reform would require not 'more money' but 'different spending'. The Conservatives said Milburn is right about the need to cut benefits, and added their own measures — halving employers' contributions for young workers and 100,000 new internships. Reform UK's economics spokesman Robert Jenrick called the review 'pointless' if Burnham does not start acting immediately. The Liberal Democrats propose a 100-hour guarantee of work experience and a careers mentor for every young person, while the Greens warn against 'demonising' young people and people with disabilities.

Political and practical constraints

The scale of the problem is illustrated by research by the Liberal Democrats: if nothing changes, the number of Neets will reach 1.26 million by 2031. At the same time, as BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg notes, Milburn's plans will not soon affect rising benefit spending — the real effect, by his own admission, will take up to ten years, and the initial investment will amount to billions, although not the £6 billion that appeared in estimates. A key point of contention within the Labour Party may be the question of whether reduced benefits should apply to those already receiving payments: Milburn believes they should, and a source at the prime minister's residence also indicates that the measures should affect current recipients. The recommendations cover the whole of the UK, but the details of applying the powers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be worked out during the preparation of the bill.