See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy JOHN-PAUL FORD ROJAS, DEPUTY BUSINESS EDITOR Published: 23:52 BST, 27 August 2026 | Updated: 01:39 BST, 28 August 2026
Nearly one million young people are out of work or education, according to stark new figures illustrating Britain's youth jobs crisis.The shocking numbers mean 60,000 more 16 to 24-year-olds are classed as not in education, employment or training (NEETs) than when Labour came to power two years ago.The Office for National Statistics said the total is 981,000 in the three months to June – 30,000 up on last year but down from just over a million at the start of 2026. The figure represents 13 per cent, or one in eight in that group.It is the latest evidence that Labour's decision to impose employer National Insurance hikes and steep minimum wage rises is backfiring.Business groups say the introduction of a raft of new workers' rights over the coming months will further deter them from hiring.The number of NEETs has risen from 920,000 in the second quarter of 2024, the period just before Sir Keir Starmer came to power.Prime Minister Andy Burnham has vowed to make the youth unemployment crisis a 'top priority' and said it 'has been ignored for too long'.Former Labour cabinet minister Alan Milburn is preparing a government-backed report into the issue. He said: 'Nearly one million young lives on hold is a scar on this country. Prime Minister Andy Burnham called the crisis a 'top priority. Andy Burnham is pictured during a visit to a Sainsbury's store in Nine Elms on August 26 Former Labour Cabinet minister Alan Milburn (pictured) is preparing a government-backed report into the issue'Young people are desperate for an opportunity to learn or earn. Instead, we're creating a lost generation.'Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: 'Labour are burying the future of young people under higher taxes and mountains of red tape.'Lindsay Judge, from Left-wing think-tank Resolution Foundation, admitted the data is 'a worrying sign that Britain's NEETs crisis is a long way from easing'.'WFH no path to success' A life of working from home is 'not the route to success', young staffers have been warned.Accounting and consulting giant EY is considering ordering junior employees back to the office as it adjusts to the world of AI.Bosses say interpersonal skills that can only be developed by interacting with colleagues will become increasingly important as AI takes over other technical tasks.EY's Sayeh Ghanbari said: 'Where people have set up their lives to be at home a lot is just not the route to success in the world of AI.'
