Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what further plans he has to reduce youth unemployment.

The youth claimant count is at its lowest level since the 1970s. Work coaches are offering all claimants tailored support from day one of their claim and we are on target to deliver an extra 250,000 work experience or sector based work academy places by March 2015. This provision will continue in 2016.

We also want to help young people who may be at risk of long term unemployment and we are testing additional skills support for 18-21 year olds: those at start of their claim who lack basic skills in numeracy and literacy; and those who will benefit from a work related opportunity from 6 months in their claim. The pilots started in November 2014 and will be complete by March 2016.