#nottheonion

Argentine ultranationalists seem to have a strange hatred of Muslims just existing in the UK

Some main points:

• Milburn rejects the idea that NEETs are lazy or unwilling to work. He says the problem is a "shortage of opportunity and a shortage of support", citing young people who've applied for hundreds of jobs without success. He blames successive governments for failing to address the problem over the past 25 years, during which the NEET rate has rarely fallen below 10%.
• 83-84% of NEETs want to work or train. He also says 50% of young people receiving health and disability benefits believe they could work or undertake training now with appropriate support.
• Milburn repeatedly praises the Netherlands, where the NEET rate is roughly a third of Britain's. He points out that 51% of Dutch 16–18-year-olds combine education with paid work, compared with just 17% in Britain. He wants greater emphasis on vocational education and early work experience.
• He wants more work experience and Saturday jobs. He argues that work experience should be a normal part of secondary education and acknowledges that opportunities are often determined by "who you know rather than what you know". He wants schools to provide these opportunities rather than relying on parents' connections.
• Severe cuts are likely, though the indication is that the money would be spent actually helping young people into work. Milburn says the government needs to "dial down" income support and "dial up" employment support, acknowledging that the transition could be "quite painful". He doesn't specify which benefits would be cut or by how much.
• Alastair asks whether his recommendations could go further than the cuts that triggered the last rebellion. Milburn replies: "Yes, that is true" but adds that MPs will be on board because it's coming with extra support. He wants a fundamental redesign of the welfare system for under-25s, so it's possible support is moved from direct cash payments more into actual support.
• He also wants higher benefits for people who cannot work, explicitly calling for "more financial support" for those with severe, enduring and complex disabilities.
• He wants substantially more investment in employment support. Milburn claims the government currently spends £25 supporting young benefit claimants financially for every £1 spent helping them into employment. He wants more spending on apprenticeships, further education, mental health services and personalised employment support.
• He puts the annual economic cost of youth worklessness at £125 billion. He also says around a quarter of NEETs spend six years outside education or employment between ages 18 and 24, potentially losing more than £250,000 in lifetime earnings.