Youth Unemployment

Lord Geddes Excerpts

Thursday 16th October 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)]

I reassure the noble Lord that we are indeed doing that. He is right that the fact that there has been a 40% reduction in young people starting apprenticeships over recent years is a shocking indictment of the previous Government’s approach to skills and the training of young people. That is why one of the measures we have introduced—just this August—is new foundation apprenticeships to support young people into employment in a range of different areas important both for them and the economy. Incidentally, they include a £2,000 incentive for the employer to take on those young people for training. We will have more to say about that and the opportunities for young people when we publish our post-16 White Paper.

[Lord Geddes (Con)]

My Lords, by way of illustration, I cite the example of my 23 year-old granddaughter, who has a first-class degree from the University of Birmingham in physics. She applied to over 200 potential employers and did not even get a reply from any of them. Can the Minister encourage such potential employers at least to have the courtesy of replying to the young?

[Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)]

The noble Lord makes an important point about how employers should recognise the efforts that young people put into applying for those roles. We recognise that some graduates face challenges in getting jobs. However, it is still the case—and I hope the noble Lord’s granddaughter will be reassured by this—that UK graduates continue to have strong and above-average employment rates. If she or other graduates need additional help as well as comprehensive jobseeker support, graduates under 24 benefit from all of the tailored jobcentre offer available to all young people on universal credit.