The British Chambers of Commerce has called on George Osborne to use his Budget speech on March 19 to focus on youth employment, training and enterprise in order to avoid a “lost generation”.
The BCC’s flagship measure being proposed is a £1,000 payment to businesses who hire long-term unemployed young people or a new apprentice. This would create 100,000 new jobs in 2014, according to the organisation In its submission to the 2014 Budget, the business organisation highlights employers’ concerns about the work readiness of young people. “We are currently faced with a deficient education, training and skills system, which has resulted in a troubled labour market, high social costs and increased youth unemployment,” the organisation says. Last week’s data from the Office for National Statistics showed a fall in youth unemployment by 48,000 – though the jobless rate among young people still stands at 917,000. Young people are nearly three times as likely to be unemployed compared to the rest of the UK population. As a result, the BCC is asking the Chancellor to consider measures to promote business investment in young people aged 16-24, including enhancing tax incentives for those investing in companies run by young entrepreneurs. “Businesses across Britain tell men they want to hire young people. Yet many cannot afford to take the risk, especially at a time when other, more qualified applicants are coming forward for the job vacancies on offer,” says BCC director general John Longworth. “If the Chancellor wants to avoid a lost generation among today’s 16-to-24 year-olds, he must use the spring Budget to help businesses take on and train up young people, whether they are going straight into jobs or into apprenticeships. He should also extend tax incentives for individuals with deep pockets who invest in businesses started up by school and college leavers and graduates.” The BCC submission proposes:
A new £100m Future Workforce Grant scheme – a £1,000 payment to businesses who hire long-term unemployed young people or a new apprentice, to create 100,000 new jobs in 2014. This will help to bridge the gap before the national insurance exemption for under 21s is introduced in 2015.
A two-year extension to the successful Apprenticeships Grant for Employers (AGE) scheme to help create 80,000 additional apprenticeships.
Increased tax relief to encourage investment in young entrepreneurs. Increasing the tax relief available through theEnterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) from 30% to 50% for investors in businesses run by under-24s will help more young people set up and grow their own business.
At just under £400m, the estimated cost of these interventions is less than 0.02% of government current spending for the next three years, and is just a fraction of the projected departmental underspend for 2013-2014 (£7bn).
“The Chancellor rightly wants to boost business investment in this year’s Budget and we support measures to do this, but not just for plant and machinery. We know there are many serious structural issues that need to be addressed to create a truly great UK economy, but not all of them can be resolved at this point in the political and economic cycle,” adds Longworth. “Getting young people into employment is vital, pressing, and easily affordable right now. If government helps businesses overcome the real risks they are facing today, the private sector will invest in a skilled workforce for the future.”
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.