• Published

The work and pensions secretary has backed the idea that the government should legally guarantee young people help to get into employment.

Pat McFadden told the BBC that job support should be given a "legislative underpinning", adding the level of assistance on offer was currently "vague".

McFadden also confirmed that some current benefit claimants would see their current entitlement to benefits reduced when they are reassessed.

But his Conservative counterpart Helen Whately said the idea of legally guaranteeing support "doesn't make sense" and ministers should focus instead on reducing taxes paid by employers.

It comes ahead of a long-awaited review by former Labour cabinet minister Alan Milburn, which will recommend on Tuesday that under-25s should be guaranteed job placements or training to help them find permanent work.

His report is also expected to say that under-25s should no longer be able to claim the health element of UK-wide universal credit - or personal independence payment (Pip), the main disability benefit in England and Wales.

Some could be eligible for a new "additional cost allowance" to cover day-to-day costs related to health conditions, under the plans.

Speaking to Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Milburn said the government should divert money away from the benefits system to boost work support, adding he wanted to see "billions" extra spent on help over the next decade.

However, the idea of reducing the entitlement of existing benefit claimants could prove controversial among Labour MPs, who scuppered a previous benefits-cutting plan under Sir Keir Starmer last year.

Milburn said the reduced entitlement for some should be accompanied by a new "duty on government" to provide jobs support to young people, such as apprenticeships, college places, job coaching, or a job.

He added that the temporary nature of previous job support schemes, including the Kickstart programme during the Covid pandemic, meant that they had been less effective as reducing long-term joblessness.

How the new guarantee would work in practice is not yet clear, with McFadden adding it would have to be "carefully" drafted.

Although local councils have some specific legal duties, including in the areas of child protection and homelessness, duties on central government currently tend to be much broader, such as operating a "comprehensive" health service.

Asked on the same programme whether he agreed with the idea of a guarantee, McFadden said: "I do think we need some legislative underpinning to this."

He added that the offer of support "needs to be more firm," adding: "People need more certainty about what they are entitled to."

He confirmed that the government planned to move younger claimants onto a new benefits system when they undergo scheduled reassessment, and some of them would not receive "what they would get today".

Other claimants, such as those with long-term disabilities, would receive an increased amount, he added.

Also speaking to Kuenssberg, shadow work and pensions secretary Helen Whately said her party backed moves to reduce welfare spending.

But she criticised the proposed legal guarantee of work support, arguing it might "sound a nice thing to do," but ministers would be better off reducing taxes and regulations on businesses to help youngsters find "real jobs".

She added it was "absurd" the government had increased taxes for employers in order to "subsidise things that look like jobs". She added: "Just stop doing the taxing.

Elsewhere in his interview, former health secretary Milburn said:

• a sustainable reduction in welfare spending cannot be achieved in two or three years, warning that "crude cuts" to the benefits system would create other additional costs for government

• GPs should not be responsible for signing sick notes declaring people unable to work

• ministers should "look very carefully" at Labour's manifesto commitment to phase out the reduced minimum wage for those aged 18-21, adding that moves towards this had "imposed a lot of cost" on firms

It comes as the government announced it will further widen eligibly for its scheme that offers jobless under-25s subsidised six-month job roles on the minimum wage.

From next April, eligible claimants will be offered a role after 12 months of unsuccessfully looking for work, rather 18 currently.

It is the second time that eligibility for the scheme has been widened, after the maximum age was increased from 21 to 24 earlier this year.

Get in touch

How have you been affected by the issues raised in this story? Tell us about your experience.

Related topics

• • Published2 days ago

• • Published3 days ago