Cut student loan repayments to get youths out of chicken shops Retail Crippling student loan repayments have stolen billions from the economy sending struggling graduates to cheap food options and public transport, a consultancy firm has argued. Analysts at Baringa found that cutting the student loan repayment rate from nine per cent to five per cent would free up to £6bn in consumer spending each year for [...]
Jobless Banquet: Youth unemployment surge ‘sends Neets to KFC’ Retail A surge in youth unemployment has fuelled the rise of chicken shops across British high streets as young people not in work, education or training – known as Neets – have flocked to fast food, a consultancy has argued. Analysts at Baringa, a consultancy with more than 2,000 employees, have drawn a link between the [...]
Improve technical education for women to plug engineer shortage Opinion Technical education, in particular for women and ethnic minorities, has a big role to play in addressing the skills shortage in engineering.
Burnham’s plea to City chiefs: let a young person shadow you at work July 30, 2026 Andy Burnham has called on City bosses to let young people shadow them at work as part of a push to tackle the problem of youth unemployment. Speaking to the Jimmy’s Jobs of the Future podcast, the prime minister said that there needs to be more work experience and apprenticeships for young people who don’t [...]
BAE Systems raises guidance yet Burnham wavers on defence July 30, 2026 BAE Systems raised its guidance after a series of contract wins yet optimism over spending top-ups may have faded after Prime Minister Andy Burnham refused to commit to lifting expenditure. The aerospace and arms company said profit for the first half of the year amounted to more than £1bn while sales also improved on the [...]
I’m a 21-year-old grad, why does the government want me to go on the dole to get a job? July 30, 2026 Oliver Dean was turned away from Job Centre because he wasn’t already on benefit. No wonder the welfare bill is ballooning Andy Burnham’s answer to youth unemployment has arrived. It begins with 14-year-olds, and the new technical pathways reach classrooms in September 2028. There is a great deal to be said for it and, as [...]
If Andy Burnham really wants to help NEETs he should rule out tax rises July 29, 2026 Andy Burnham’s announcements on technical education are welcome, but they will be meaningless if young people have no jobs to move into. The Budget will be the real test of how he plans to grow the economy, says Georgiana Bristol Andy Burnham has descended from the North with an array of new pledges and spending [...]
Students urged to rethink idea of a ‘safe job’ as Labour pledges major education reform July 28, 2026 A Cabinet minister has warned young people against depending on “safe and secure jobs” as Andy Burnham announced that children as young as 14 will get access to technical education. Pat McFadden, the work and pensions secretary, has said that changes to the education system were “more urgent” given disruption to the jobs market from [...]
Mahmood called for banker bonus tax to fix youth unemployment July 17, 2026 Shabana Mahmood has previously called for a tax on banker bonuses to fix youth unemployment in a move that will renew fears the sector could be targeted for a cash grab. The front-runner to be Andy Burnham’s Chancellor was a staunch supporter of a bill set out by Labour in opposition that sought to levy [...]
If Burnham wants firms to hire young people, he needs to get out of their way July 8, 2026 Firms don’t need subsidies to incentivise them to hire NEETs, we just need to make sure that work pays, says Mani Basharzad Andy Burnham’s honeymoon seems to be getting shorter by the day. Even before reaching Nunber 10, he is refusing to hold a proper press conference. But when he enters office, he will face [...]