Alan Milburn warns 'no magic wand' to solving Neets crisis ahead of 'watershed' report

详细摘要

Former Health Secretary Alan Milburn will this week unveil his long-awaited report into tackling Britain's 'Neets' crisis - a moment Andy Burnham has branded a 'watershed'

A former Health Secretary heading a major review into Britain's 'Neets' crisis has said it is fantasy to suggest it can be solved in two or three years.

Alan Milburn warned there is no "magic wand" to tackle the enormous number of 18-to-24 year olds who are not in employment, education or training (Neet). Mr Milburn, whose long-awaited report will be released this week, said that under his proposals the government will have a duty to provide opportunities - while young people must take them or face sanctions.

He also said young people will "of course" lose out on benefits if his proposals are implemented. Mr Milburn told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “This is a 10-year plan, and you've just got to be candid with people about this. Everybody thinks 'wave the magic wand, snap your fingers, and you can do it in two or three years'. I'm telling you, you can't."

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Under his proposals, he revealed, there will be an "opportunity guarantee" - with safeguards to prevent young people suing the government if they do not feel this has been delivered. He said: "We're calling it the opportunity guarantee, so there should be a guarantee for a young person because at the moment the only guarantee they've got is to a very simple thing, to get a benefit."

He added: "So, in the end, in every welfare system in the world, there's always a backstop, there's always a sanction. And my view is very straightforward on this, most young people want to work. If you're giving them more opportunities, if you're giving them more support, which we should, then their obligation is to take up those opportunities. And if they don't, what isn't tolerable either for them or for the taxpayer is that they should be living a life on benefit, that's got to change."

Other proposals…

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