Burnham pledges ‘big changes’ to the way the welfare system works to tackle Neets crisis – UK politics live
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Prime minister’s comments come as children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza highlights ‘staggering’ inequalities in young people’s treatment across UK
Burnham pledges ‘big changes’ to the way the welfare system works to tackle Neets crisis
Good morning.
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system → come → crisis
Children and young people are at the top of the agenda today, with the publication of a hard-hitting report from Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner for England, and a Times article by Andy Burnham.
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Children → hit → Burnham
They are focusing on slightly different cohorts – Burnham is writing about young people who leave school and enter the benefits system, while the de Souza reports covers the experiences of young children in multiple aspects of their lives – but their overall message is the same: the younger generation is being let down.
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generation → focus → lives
De Souza has studied more than 160 datasets to examine how what happens to children as they grow up varies across England and she says the variation is “staggering”.
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variation → study → England
In her report, The Childhood Lottery, she explains:
In four local authorities, the total amount spent on youth services per teenager is the princely sum of £0, £421 less than in the highest spending local authority.
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amount → explain → authority
Some areas of the country are sending nearly 90% of their looked after children to out-of-area placements, compared to the almost 20% in the areas making least use of these – although given this means being away from family ties, and friends, that is still worryingly high.
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that → send → ties
But what stands out is not merely these differences, but how much work there is to do to deliver a happy, healthy childhood in every postcode.
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stands → stand → postcode
I have made the difficult decision to highlight the 20 places where it is hardest to grow up.
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it → make → places
I want to be clear that this is not a review of the local authority, this is an assessment based on a wide range of measures looking at the challenges faced, the full range of services available and the outcomes we see.
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we → want → services
We cannot shy away, though, from the fact that poor education outcomes, long health waiting lists or simply feeling unsafe converge in particular places.
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outcomes → shy → places
The report identifies Middlesbrough as the most challenging place to be a child, and Cheshire East as the least challenging place.
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report → identify → place
I will publish fuller tables shortly.
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I → publish → tables
The data pulled together in the Childhood Lottery highlights the scale of challenges faced by children across all areas of the country and all areas of their lives.
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data → pull → lives
For example that:
-Over 1 million children (1,048,965) had active referrals to children and young people’s mental health services in 2024-25.1
-Most pupils (55%) do not achieve a good standard in their English and Maths GCSEs (grade 5 or better in both) at the end of key stage 4.
-There are around 1 million young people in the UK aged 16 to 24 not in employment, education or training (NEET)
-Approaching half (44%) of looked after children are placed outside their local authority area.
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half → have → area
-12% of children said they did not feel safe in their local area.
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they → say → area
The government was expected to publish Alan Milburn’s final report with recommendations on Neets before the budget.
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government → expect → budget
Now it is coming next month, which means the pitch-rolling process ahead of publication is unusually protracted.
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process → come → publication
Milburn has given an interview to the Guardian and, as Anna Bawden and Kiran Stacey report, he is explicit about wanting some benefit payments to be cut to fund more employment support.
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payments → give → support
In his article, Burnham accepts that many people people today feel “shut out”.
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people → accept → article
There is no shortage of people lining up to take a swing at the next generation but, if we are honest, the blame for this failure lies with politicians.
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blame → be → politicians
At the very moment growing up became harder, the support young people relied on was stripped away.
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people → grow → moment
Youth services were practically abolished.
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services → abolish → ?
Children’s mental health services were cut.
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services → cut → ?
Families were left to fight for support for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
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Families → leave → needs
The pandemic stole two years, and social media is too often taking something much deeper: their confidence and sense of belonging.
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media → steal → belonging
Add an education system focused on the university route and a job market offering too few opportunities, and we should not be surprised that so many are shut out.
And he signals that he is going to follow Milburn’s recommendations on benefits.
Today, the welfare system provides an assessment, a payment and, after that, a goodbye.
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system → add → that
But it will also be matched by an expectation that young people will take up the opportunities made available to them.
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people → match → them
This will mean big changes to the way our welfare system operates.
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system → mean → way
Benefits will become the backstop, not the starting point.
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Benefits → become → ?
The system will no longer begin by establishing which benefits a young person is entitled to.
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person → begin → benefits
It will begin with their ambitions and the help they need to achieve them.
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they → begin → them
Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dem deputy leader and Treasury spokesperson, holds a press conference on Lib Dem budget proposals.
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Cooper → hold → proposals
Andy Burnham is on a visit in South Wales linked to the 60th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster (which is on Wednesday).
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which → link → Wednesday
Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.
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Street → hold → briefing
Wes Streeting, the defence secretary, takes questions in the Commons.
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Streeting → take → Commons
Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner for England, gives a speech at at the launch of her Childhood Lottery report.
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Souza → give → report
After 3.30pm: MPs debate amendments to the Northern Ireland Troubles bill.
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MPs → debate → bill
Rhun ap Iorwerth, the Welsh first minister, gives a speech on devolution.
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Iorwerth → give → devolution
I’m afraid we are no longer able to have comments open below the line every day on this blog.
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comments → ’m → blog
…and 2 more, not listed.
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