Hundreds of thousands of could see their benefits replaced with employment support under government welfare reforms.
Alan Milburn, the government’s youth unemployment tsar, suggested many young people who are not working, in training or education – including those diagnosed with conditions such as ADHD and anxiety – should see a shift in the state support they receive.
“Work beats welfare every single time,” he said while visiting the Netherlands on a “fact-finding mission” as he prepares to publish his final recommendations in a landmark report about young people and work later this autumn.
The hefty cost of Burnham’s slick social media campaign
Andy Burnham is spending up to £1m a year on expanding No 10’s social media operation, The i Paper can reveal, as the Prime Minister tries to connect with audiences on TikTok and Instagram.
Here’s where that money is going.
Where do the figures come from?
The Cabinet Office advertised 13 roles in July
Lowest salary – £37,922
Social videographer.
Highest salary – £80,342
Head of social and creative production.
Total cost – £1.04m
if everyone is paid the highest band offered, including pensions and national insurance.
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Where is the money going?
What do colleagues think?
Burnham’s dedication to promoting the Government’s work on social media has been celebrated by Labour colleagues, after his predecessor, Sir Keir Starmer, was criticised for a lack of communication skills while prime minister.
One such Labour MP told The i Paper: “Burnham’s just got that touch when it comes to communication. … We’re getting way more cut-through already.”
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Burnham vs Starmer
- In his first 90 days on TikTok, Starmer received 59.3 million views to Burnham’s 78.1 million.
- Burnham has hit 752,000 Instagram followers since taking office, with his predecessor peaking at 852,000 after two years.
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France artwork heist – multiple pieces stolen from Renoir Museum
Two thieves tried to steal four artworks from a museum dedicated to the impressionist Pierre-Auguste Renoir in southern France on Tuesday, dropping two paintings as they fled the scene.
What we know
Two thieves carried out the raid at the museum in , near Nice, on Tuesday morning, officials have said.
- Wire fencing was cut for access, and museum alarms went off at 5:48am local time, according to the local mayor.
- However, the pair .
Cagnes-sur-Mer’s mayor, Bryan Masson, described the perpetrators as”well equipped” and “well informed” when speaking to the media on Tuesday.
In comments translated from French, he said the thieves “were wearing helmets, gloves, and combat gear” and carried “an electric knife and hacksaw” to cut the fence and gain access to the garden.
Video footage then showed the group cutting through structures holding the paintings’ frames in place before they began their escape, Masson said.
The stolen works
The four works initially targeted in the heist – Portrait of Madame Pichon (1895), Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (1910), Coco Lisant (1905) and Jeune fille au puits (1886) – were valued together at over £7.7m, according to reports from France.
According to an update from the local mayor’s office later on Tuesday morning, the two pieces the thieves made it out with were: (left above) and Jeune femme au puits (next slide).
Also missing: Jeune fille au puits
- Prior to the robbery, the Renoir Museum was home to 12 paintings by the artist, who died in 1919.
- The museum was opened in 1960, in Renoir’s last home before his death.
- This heist comes less than a year after eight items valued at about £76m were stolen in a daylight robbery from the Louvre in Paris.
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How the King’s pointed letter ‘surprised’ Harry and Meghan
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were “surprised” by the release of a letter on behalf of King Charles, which clarified their status as “akin to private citizens”, a spokesperson for the couple has said.
Here’s what we know.
No titles, little warning
- A top Buckingham Palace official sent the letter to military officials and Government departments on Monday.
- It stated that as non-working royals, the Sussexes will not use the titles of “His and Her Royal Highness”.
- The couple “were a little surprised not to have been told about this in advance,” their spokesperson said.
- Their team was still seeking guidance when it was released, The i Paper understands.
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No chance for clarification
The Sussexes did not have enough time to clarify any points before the guidance was issued to the media, it is understood.
- The letter’s contents were reportedly shared with their team at 1:59pm.
- Team Sussex replied to Buckingham Palace at 2:19pm, seeking clarification on one or two points.
- The letter was revealed to the media at 3:06pm on Monday.
- Harry was in a meeting and could not be contacted until 3:09pm.
- Team Sussex received confirmation at 3:11pm that the letter had been sent to the media.
Why are the titles important?
The reference to the HRH title was seen as an attempt to slap the Sussexes down amid concerns that the couple may want to monetise their royal status, including via Meghan’s lifestyle products brand, As Ever.
The title was seen in a video Meghan posted accompanying a podcast last year.
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Harry, a ‘private citizen’?
- The letter clarified that “in short, their position is akin to private citizens with commercial and charitable interests”.
- But a friend of the couple previously told The i Paper that Harry, as the King’s son, could never be an entirely private citizen.
- “Some people will say, ‘But they’re private citizens.’ Nonsense. Utter nonsense. They are two of the most high-profile people in the world,” the friend added.
Not a quiet word in your ear, not a private memo; no, this was a formal, blunt statement of fact sent to Harry on his father’s orders. Ouch! There is to be no doubt: the King is not going to be bounced into accepting any change in the Sussexes’ status just because they have chosen to return to the UK.
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No ‘half in, half out’ option
Charles and Prince William are said to be worried that family members doing business deals alongside official duties for the state opens themselves up to the sort of abuse of position accusations facing the King’s brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
- This led to them clarifying that Harry and Meghan won’t be attending state functions or official engagements.
Who will fund the Sussexes’ security?
The couple returned to the country for what they called an extended period on 26 August, after quitting royal duties in 2020. Their children have reportedly been enrolled in English schools.
The row over who will pay for their security is ongoing, with the couple currently paying for it but lobbying the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec) – which is set to meet this week – for taxpayer-funded police protection.
Watch more from The i Paper
Asked whether he thought Andy Burnham’s government may need to put more cash forward to support younger people, Milburn said: “Yes, of course, absolutely.”
It comes as the number of 16- 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEETs) topped 1 million for the first time since 2013 earlier this year.
An interim report published by Milburn in May said rising ill-health among young people, limited vocational education, a hands-off benefit system and a weak labour market had been the key drivers behind the crisis.
The Netherlands has one of the lowest rates of youth unemployment in Europe (4.9 per cent) and is expected to become a blueprint for reforms in the UK.
In the Netherlands, local government subsidises wages and funds wraparound employment support via youth hubs at a cost of around €13.4bn (£11.5bn).
In Britain, support is generally for unemployment and centralised via the Universal Credit benefits system, and the Government currently spends around £8.1bn a year on welfare and out-of-work benefits for young people aged 16 to 24.
Research from the independent think-tank The Resolution Foundation found that if Britain’s Neet rate mirrored the Dutch rate, 600,000 more young adults would be in work.
Speaking at a technical college where young people in The Hague study hospitality and catering, Milburn said he was struck by the “primacy of work” in the Netherlands.
“The starting point is [the Dutch have] got an absolute mindset,” Milburn said. “It’s all about work. It’s all about getting young people participating, whether in education, training, or employment.”
Milburn pointed out that OECD figures put the UK at the top of the charts for anxiety levels among younger people, with the Netherlands coming second.
“Interestingly, the Dutch are number two [for youth anxiety], but that doesn’t translate into low levels of participation,” Milburn said. “Just because you’ve got a condition, or even just because you’ve got the diagnosis, [it] shouldn’t mean that you aren’t able to work.”
Milburn added that “tens of thousands of physically disabled people are disproving that thesis every single day”.
“They work because work’s good for people and gives them purpose and meaning, not just income,” Milburn added.
In August, The i Paper reported that Milburn was considering whether to recommend giving cash payments to particularly vulnerable young people who faced a high risk of becoming Neet, such as care leavers, teen parents and those leaving young offender institutions.
However, other young people could see their benefits change.
Nearly a quarter – around 250,000 – of young people who are not in education, employment or training (Neet) are estimated to have mental health conditions such as , according to Department for Work and Pensions .
The number of young people claiming Personal Independence Payments (PIP) for mental health conditions such as anxiety and neurodevelopmental conditions such as ADHD has also increased.
Around 440,000 16- to 24-year-olds claim PIP, with the figure having doubled over the last five years. Many of them list anxiety, ADHD or autism as one of their conditions.
A separate review, overseen by disabilities minister Sir Stephen Timms, is currently looking at how to reform PIP, and it is thought that it may become harder to access the benefit for ADHD and anxiety.
Milburn said he wanted to reframe the conversation about young people and work to “stop the notion that just because you either self-identify or are identified as having a condition, that this automatically means you are not able to participate in the labour market”.
The former Health Secretary also described fit notes, which allow a GP to sign someone off work, as “insane”. Earlier this year, the Government launched trial pilot schemes to test stopping or replacing GP-issued fit notes.
“You get a fit note. You enter the welfare system… you get a health and disability benefit. The stickiness kicks in,” Milburn said. “You then have a 50 per cent chance of [still] being on health and disability benefit in 15 years’ time.”
Milburn added Britain has been “underinvesting in young people” and faced “fiscal disaster” in the long term if it’s left without enough people paying taxes to support the welfare state.