Milburn report: Nearly 1 million UK youth not in work, education, or training

The Story

A report by Alan Milburn states that about 1 million young people across the UK are not in jobs, training, or education – roughly one in eight – and the situation is worsening. The report estimates the cumulative cost at £125bn and warns of a “lost generation” and a “moral crisis.”

Key Facts

• About 1 million young people in the UK are Neet (not in employment, education, or training), representing about one in eight.
• A decade ago the UK’s Neet rate was near the EU average; in 2025 only Romania’s rate was worse.
• Six in 10 young people who are Neet have never had a single job, compared with four in 10 in 2005.
• The cumulative cost of the Neet problem is estimated at £125bn.
• In Barnet, north London, 1% of 16‑ and 17‑year‑olds are Neet; in Dudley, West Midlands, this is 21.5%.
• Of the 10 English local authorities with the highest proportion of Neet youth, eight are in the north or Midlands.
• Young people are now more likely to be economically inactive (53%) than unemployed (47%), with increasing health‑based inactivity due to anxiety, depression, or neurodevelopmental conditions.
• About seven in 10 young people who claim a health and disability benefit still do so a decade later.
• The report criticizes the NHS “fit note” system as “the poster child for this structural failure.”
• The Department for Work and Pensions spends about £1 on employment support for every £25 spent on benefits for young people.
• Of those who first claim a health or disability benefit aged 16 to 24, almost half are still out of work or education a decade later.
• Entry‑level jobs are becoming harder to get due to remote recruitment and the decline of roles traditionally filled by younger people.
• Employers are less willing to take on younger staff because of relatively higher minimum wages and what the report calls the “pastoral burden.”

Conflicting Reports

No conflicting reports identified in the source article.

Still Unclear

No open questions identified in the source article.

Misconceptions

The report explicitly rejects myths that young people are lazy or have no interest in work, stating that the overwhelming majority of Neets want to find work, education, or training. Milburn writes: “Young people are different from those who came before them. Not worse. Not lazier. Not less intelligent. But different in ways that have material consequences.”

Key Figures

• Alan Milburn – author of the report.

Sources: The Guardian