Earlier this week, I spoke in the debate on Plan 2 Student Loans.
This debate came a day after the Chancellor said "So, yes, we want to fix [student loans]. Yes, we want to make improvements. But is it front of the queue? No, it’s not..."
I urged Rachel Reeves and the Treasury team to look at the wider context and what that means for younger people;
- Unemployment in the UK is at 17.2%, which is its highest since 2021, and since 2015 for those aged 16 to 24.
- UK youth unemployment, for the first time ever, is above the European average.
- Last year, 257,000 people left the UK, three-quarters of whom were under the age of 35.
But what does this tell us and why is it important?
Not only do we have youth employment going up, but herds of young people are moving elsewhere. That is a tragedy for our economy and for those young people, because they are having to look elsewhere to find work, the lifestyle they want and their place in the world.
I urged Labour and Reeves to come to a solution on Plan 2 Student Loans.
You can watch my full speech here.
