The Guardian view on rising youth unemployment: regional leaders as well as ministers must take action | Editorial

2026-03-05 - 18:53

Worsening health is only part of the reason for the concerning rise in young people who are neither studying nor working Launching a review into unemployment and economic inactivity among young people in December, the former health secretary Alan Milburn described the situation as a “national outrage”, and suggested that a “coalition of the concerned” would be needed to turn things around for the 16- to 24-year-olds known as Neets (not in education, employment or training). The latest figures, showing another increase in the final quarter of last year, to 957,000, underline the scale of the problem. The review is evidence that ministers are paying attention. The “youth guarantee” in the autumn budget means that £820m will be spent on paid work placements for 18- to 21-year-olds. But further bold reforms are needed if young adults are to be enabled to flourish. Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...