Alan Milburn Warns UK Could Have 1.25 Million NEETs By 2031 Without Urgent Action

A major review warned that one in six young people in the UK could be outside education, employment or training within five years unless urgent action is taken, with Alan Milburn saying the education, health and welfare systems are “no longer fit for purpose”.

Milburn, the former minister leading the review, said “We are at risk of a lost generation,” adding that the number of 16 to 24-year-olds out of work, education or training is set to rise to 1.25 million by 2031.

BBC

The BBC said the unemployment rate for 16 to 24-year-olds is 16.2%, the highest since 2014, and that there were 957,000 young people classed as not in employment, education or training from October to December 2025.

Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden told the BBC he commissioned the report to save a generation, saying “We are already taking action,” including plans to pay companies to hire young people and to create more apprenticeships.

The review’s author also argued that for “too many young people it is now simply out of reach,” framing the problem as a system failing to prepare young people for adult life rather than a lack of desire to work.

Milburn told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg that the welfare system is putting young people “on a path to a life not in jobs but on benefits,” and he said “This is not a failure of young people. It is a failure of a system stuck in the past.”

The BBC reported that Milburn challenged the narrative that young people do not want to work, saying 84% of Neets surveyed said they want a job or training.

BBC

In the London Insider account, Milburn said the “first rung of the career ladder has thinned” and described a “hopeless catch-22” where employers ask for work experience but opportunities for young people to gain it have narrowed or gone.

The London Insider also said the review found that in 2024/25, for every £1 spent on employment support for young people, around £25 was spent on benefits, which Milburn described to the BBC as deeply troubling.

The BBC added that McFadden said the government is focusing on “early intervention” measures such as special educational needs support and removal of the two-child cap on benefits, while also saying “But we know there is more to do.”

The BBC included accounts from young people affected by the Neets crisis, including Zaynah, 24, who has suffered from physical ill health and said she has applied for more than 200 jobs without hearing back from employers.

Zaynah told the BBC, “Getting a job is very hard because with my issues, I haven't got that much experience, I've never worked before,” and she said she felt it was restricting her and leaving her to claim benefits.

The BBC also quoted Luke, 23, who studied product design at Central St Martin’s University and said he had applied for more than 400 positions and had only ever had one interview as a cleaner, adding, “It makes you depressed especially the amount of rejections.”

In the same BBC report, Rocky said he had been out of work for a year before joining Nando’s as a waiter, and three years later he described himself as “a manager at Nando's,” saying he would not have progressed without mentoring by a manager at Nando’s and ongoing support from the youth charity.

Across the reporting, the review’s warning about a potential rise to 1.25 million by 2031 was tied to the idea that the system is failing to enable young people’s participation in the labour market, with Milburn expected to argue the priority must be changing how young people move into work or training.