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Lord Young of Cookham (Con)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 5 February 2026

Debate

Youth Unemployment

Contribution

My Lords, I am grateful for that reply, and I welcome the initiatives the Minister has just mentioned, such as the youth guarantee. However, do not those initiatives need to be accompanied by welfare reform, which can quite often pull young people in the opposite direction? A few weeks ago, the Prime Minister said: “Our welfare state is trapping people, not just in poverty but out of work—young people in particular”. That was reinforced by Alan Milburn, the Government’s employment tsar, who said: “We’re spending more money on health and disability benefits for 16 to 24-year-olds than we are on apprenticeships. Is that really the right priority?” Will the forthcoming King’s Speech therefore take the difficult but necessary decisions to reform welfare and allay the concerns of the Minister’s colleagues?

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