Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Con)

My Lords, we have been lucky to hear three absolutely first-class maiden speeches today. I look forward to a fourth in just a few moments—no pressure. In the last King’s Speech debate, in July 2024, I praised the Government’s ambition to achieve an 80% employment rate by helping 2 million people from welfare into work. Now, 22 months on, the figure required is 2.2 million, meaning the target is 10% more difficult to reach. In the same timeframe, we have seen unemployment increase from 1.4 million to the 1.8 million announced this morning, with those signed off with no requirement to seek work up from 2.7 million to 4.2 million. I want to focus on one cohort within those figures, the 960,000 young people who are not in education, employment or training—another figure which has increased since 2024. The Prime Minister called the gracious Speech “a King’s Speech for the young people whose gifts lie in their hands, and who work hard”.—[Official Report, Commons, 13/5/26; col. 24.] Last Monday, he said that “incremental change won’t cut it”. For the 1 million NEETs, there is a mismatch between the Government’s programme and their rhetoric. To tackle a NEETs crisis, it should have included a Bill to ensure that our education system properly prepares young people for employment. It should have included a Bill to reform welfare so it is targeted at those who genuinely need it, rather than those who can work. It should have included a Bill to help businesses create jobs and provide training opportunities, an essential element to get Britain working. To be fair, the Government have said they will respond to the Milburn review, but the hole in the King’s Speech on NEETs betrays the Government’s view that new legislation is not required to solve the crisis. What will happen between now and the next King’s Speech? The rate of change is likely to accelerate, but at the foothills of the AI transition. British Chambers of Commerce research suggests that AI use has doubled since 2024, with the majority of businesses now using it. By the time of the next King’s Speech, its use will be universal. Our labour market is therefore heading for a fundamental shift. Taking King’s and Queen’s Speeches as a barometer of how seriously UK Governments, both Labour and Conservative, are taking AI is revealing. Of the six gracious Speeches since the 2019 general election, AI has warranted just two mentions, once in 2023 and once in 2024. Trawling through the explanatory notes for those six Speeches, AI tells me that buses were mentioned more than AI, with 33 and 28 references respectively. I suspect that Claude does not realise how interested voters are in public transport, but when historians look back at this period, it is safe to say that the AI revolution will feature more prominently. In fact, I argue that there is a strong case that AI should have been the key theme in this King’s Speech, rather than an add-on. To conclude, I urge the Government to consider a strategic AI review on a par with the strategic defence review to properly and thoroughly examine the impact and opportunity of AI. Such an approach is needed, not just to prevent the NEETs crisis from worsening but to prepare our economy, our society and the public sector for the future.