Baroness Bottomley of Nettlestone (Con)

The right reverend Prelate’s wife will definitely know that being without education, employment or training has a devastating effect on young people. The consequences for social stability and the fabric of society are incredibly important, and I know the Minister is aware of that. To get a job, individuals need skills, confidence and motivation, and we expect young people to use AI and social media tools to get jobs, apprenticeships and training. But I would like the Minister to look at today’s report from Policy Exchange, which talks about “sickfluencers”: those on social media coaching people on how to make successful claims for disability benefits, mental health, neurodiversity and PIP. A quarter of the population is now classified as disabled, and there is three times the increase in those claiming disability benefits, as the Minister will know. The time has come to work with the health department to make it more stringent to assess whether people really have ADHD, autism and all the other manifold diagnoses people are taking on. There are times when a more bracing message encouraging young people into education, training or employment would be much more constructive —and I do not wish that to sound harsh.