Oral Answers to Questions

Ashley Fox Excerpts

Monday 12th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Western]

My hon. Friend is right. The whole purpose of youth hubs is to take support out of traditional settings and into communities, meeting young people where they are rather than expecting them to come to us. Through partnerships with local authorities, charities, colleges and other organisations, youth hubs such as the upcoming Wrexham youth hub will help us reach young people in their local communities who might otherwise miss out on support. We will continue to encourage all youth hubs to undertake proactive outreach and work with local partners to reach young people. I have seen excellent examples of that in the hubs I have visited thus far.

[Sir Ashley Fox (Bridgwater) (Con)]

Over the last two years, the Government have increased the cost of employing young people with higher national insurance charges on employers and imposed the 350 pages of additional regulation contained in their “unemployment rights Act”. Does the Minister agree that the best way of reducing youth unemployment is to cut the cost of employing young people rather than an endless array of hubs, grants, schemes and guarantees?