'We are at risk of a lost generation': One in six young people will not be in work or training in five years without action, report warns

One in six young people will not be in education, employment or training within five years unless urgent action is taken, a major review has warned. The education, health and welfare systems are no longer fit for purpose in preparing young people for adult life, said its author former minister Alan Milburn. We are at risk of a lost generation, he warned, with the number of 16 to 24-year-olds out of work, education or training set to rise to 1.25 million by 2031. The first rung of the career ladder has thinned and that for too many young people it is now simply out of reach, Milburn is set to say in a speech later. That places them in a hopeless catch-22 where employers ask for work experience but the opportunities for young people to gain it have narrowed or gone, he will say.