Alan Milburn's Neet review: shift money from benefits to youth employment support
Alan Milburn, whose government-led review found a record 1 million 18- to 24-year-olds in England are Neet, says ministers should cut welfare spending to fund more employment support ahead of John Healey's first budget.
Alan Milburn's Neet review: shift money from benefits to youth employment support
Cut welfare to fund work support
Alan Milburn, the Tony Blair-era health secretary leading a government-backed review into young people out of work and education, wants money moved from the welfare system into services that get young people into jobs. He made the call to the Guardian in the run-up to John Healey's first budget, in which the chancellor is under pressure to explain how he will reduce a multibillion-pound black hole in the country's finances.
"We need to redistribute money from the welfare system to more employment support if we are going to end the Neet crisis."
Milburn argued the current system is "over-indexed to cash", leaving young people who could work on a path to a lifetime on benefits.
A record 1 million young people Neet
His review calculated that a record 1 million 18- to 24-year-olds are now classed as Neet - not in education, employment or training.
Milburn does not see the numbers as a normal downturn in the jobs market. He calls it a problem of youth detachment, and the figures back that framing:
- 60% of these Neets have never had a job
- The review counts a record 1 million 18- to 24-year-olds as Neet
He also said no one in government is responsible both for preventing young people becoming Neet and getting them out of it.
A health crisis as well as a jobs crisis
In a joint interview with Peter Fonagy, chair of the independent review of mental health, ADHD and autism, Milburn said the problem goes beyond employment: "The Neet crisis is a health crisis". Ill health, he said, is driving higher Neet rates, and being shut out of work and education in turn damages young people's mental health.
Fonagy's review found mental distress has risen significantly across all age groups in England since the 1990s, especially among under-18s. He warned that on current trends one in four young people could have diagnosable mental disorders rather than one in five, raising their chances of becoming Neet. His review recommended providing help at the point of need, not after a diagnosis.
The two reviews are expected to point in the same direction, with recommendations that employment, health and benefits support become more integrated, and that young people with health needs get prompt needs assessment, a personalised health plan and a wider "participation plan". Milburn also hopes to bring in a new guarantee for mental health care. "I would hope that, for the first time, we could also introduce a maximum waiting time for mental health services", he said.
What happens next
Ministers have pushed back Milburn's final report until after the budget. Healey is expected to use a tax raid on banks to help pay for cost of living schemes, including a new energy support package. At last month's Labour conference he announced a £100m "local apprenticeship service", calling it "a downpayment on Alan Milburn's work".
The transformation the two reviews describe would cost hundreds of millions of pounds, sources believe, though neither Milburn nor Fonagy would comment on funding levels - both said upfront investment was crucial. Milburn said the benefits bill could be reduced over the medium term only if support and opportunities for young people increase first, and that there has got to be an obligation on young people to take up those opportunities.
He rejected the idea of a workshy generation: "This is not a workshy, snowflake generation, you know, who are making mental distress up". His final report now lands after the budget, where Healey is expected to announce the bank tax to fund cost of living measures.
