Young adults could face the removal of their entitlement to benefits if they decline a government-funded job after being unemployed for 18 months, according to the work and pensions secretary.
Pat McFadden, speaking to the BBC, stated that individuals would need a “good reason” to refuse one of the 55,000 six-month placements, which are scheduled to begin rolling out next April.
The government has indicated that these roles could encompass sectors such as construction and hospitality, although the participating companies have not yet been confirmed.
Helen Whately, McFadden’s Conservative counterpart, argued that the scheme demonstrates Labour’s “no plan for growth, no plan to create real jobs”.
The Department for Work and Pensions has confirmed that the placements will initially be introduced in six UK regions with high youth unemployment starting in spring 2026, following the scheme’s initial announcement in September.
These “fully subsidised” six-month roles, offering 25 hours per week at the legal minimum wage, will be financed from an £820m fund earmarked at the Budget until 2029, which will also cover training and work support.
The placements are targeted at 18- to 21-year-olds on Universal Credit who have been seeking employment for 18 months.
While the employers participating in the scheme are yet to be announced, government ministers have suggested that new opportunities will be created in areas including construction, health and social care, and hospitality.
Overall, the government intends to establish 350,000 training and work experience placements.
During an interview on BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, McFadden was questioned about what would constitute an acceptable reason for declining a role.
He suggested that a “family emergency” preventing attendance could be a valid reason.
McFadden added: “This is an offer on one hand, but it’s an expectation on the other. Because the future we don’t want for young people is to be sitting at home on benefits, when there are other options out there.”
The number of 16-24-year-olds not in employment, education, or training – known as NEETs – has been on the rise since 2021, with recent figures indicating that nearly a million young people are currently not earning or learning.
The government has said that these jobs will not always be in the same sectors, but that they would be in the following regions:
According to the government, a “dedicated work support session” will be provided to 900,000 young people on Universal Credit seeking employment, followed by four additional weeks of “intensive support”.
An employment coach will then direct them to one of six pathways: work, work experience, apprenticeship, further training, learning, or a workplace training scheme with a guaranteed interview.
The government anticipates that more than 1,000 young people will commence employment within the first six months of the scheme.
Shadow work and pensions secretary Whately criticised other measures announced in the Budget, saying: “The chancellor’s tax hikes are driving up youth unemployment, snatching a career from a generation of young people.”
She added: “This scheme is nothing more than taking with one hand to give with the other.”
Further plans are expected to be detailed in the coming week as the government prepares to publish its national youth strategy.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves previously announced that the government would fund a scheme to make apprenticeship training for under-25s at small and medium businesses “completely free”.
In the three months to September, there were 946,000 young people in the UK who were NEET, which is equivalent to 12.7% of all individuals aged 16-24.
A quarter cite long-term sickness or disability as a barrier to work or education, while the number claiming health and disability benefits is also on the rise.
The government announced last month that it was launching an independent review into the rising number of young people not working or studying.
Council data shows one-in-three residents know someone who lost their job in the past year.
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