Disabled youths to get faster access to guaranteed jobs under new scheme announced by Labour
“This is exactly the kind of intervention that can change lives”
Young people on health benefits in Sheffield will receive fast access to job opportunities in a bid to cut the welfare bill as part of a new national scheme, Labour has announced.
The move will see young people receiving health or disability support offered a guaranteed job, funded by the Government, three months after they start claiming benefits.
Currently, jobless young people must have been on universal credit for 18 months before receiving an offer under the Government’s job guarantee scheme.
They will also be given mentoring along with support with mental health, finances and housing to help prepare them for work.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said Labour was “putting long-term sick and disabled people at the front of the queue from April next year”.
The expansion of the job guarantee scheme comes as the Government attempts to slash the number of young people not in education, employment or training (Neet), which currently stands at just under one million.
Former Cabinet minister Alan Milburn, who was commissioned by Sir Keir Starmer to carry out a review of the Neet problem, said earlier this year that 45 per cent of jobless young people reported having a disability.
In 2013/14, that figures stood at just 21.1 per cent.
The jobs guarantee scheme aims to help 90,000 more young people into work by the next election, while the Government is also aiming to tackle a disability employment gap that means disabled people are less likely to be in work than others.
Steve Rotheram, mayor of the Liverpool City Region and a close ally of Andy Burnham, said: “Too many young people with disabilities or long-term health conditions have spent years being told what they can’t do, rather than being given the chance to show what they can.
“This is exactly the kind of intervention that can change lives.”
Helen Whately, shadow work and pensions secretary, said: “Almost every disabled person I speak to – young or old – tells me they want to work. With 300,000 fewer jobs under Labour, that’s become even harder.
“Labour could have tackled that problem head on by cutting the burdens on businesses. Instead, they are bringing back a Conservative post-pandemic scheme. Andy Burnham clearly has no new ideas.
“Nor have Labour explained how this new policy will be funded. Is it yet another ‘spend now and hope for savings later’ scheme?
“Conservatives will back businesses to create jobs and offer young people struggling with mental health support, rather than cash handouts. We will not allow Labour’s lost generation to live out their lives on benefits.”