Andy Burnham's plan to identify potential NEETs (not in education, employment or training) from the age of four has been described as 'depressing' and likely to breed a low-aspiration generation. The idea, originally from former Labour health secretary Alan Milburn, would see primary schools flagging children at risk of future unemployment based on factors such as poverty, poor mental health, or being in care.
Concerns over labelling children
Writing in an opinion piece for Express.co.uk, Mieka Smiles expressed horror at the proposal, arguing that struggling children should receive help without being 'put on the future unemployment list'. She said: 'Are we really going to tell children that they are at risk of never getting a job?! God, talk about a low-aspiration Britain.'
Smiles, a Conservative councillor, noted that she has time for Burnham as Prime Minister, but was 'astounded' by the plan. She highlighted that 743,000 young people aged 16 to 24 are currently unemployed in the UK, an 11-year high, and blamed the benefits crisis for fuelling the problem.
Milburn's warning signs
Alan Milburn, tasked with tackling the UK's youth unemployment crisis, said: 'The warning signs are there from a very early, early age' and suggested primary schools should identify at-risk children. Risk factors include poverty, poor mental health, or being in care.
Smiles drew on family history to illustrate her point, noting that her father-in-law, who grew up in pressed circumstances and didn't know what an egg was until age eight, would likely have been singled out under such measures. She argued that children should be shown the greatness they can achieve, not boxed in by what they can't.
Separate issues
In a separate section, Smiles criticised new 'squat loos' in Cambridge costing £1 a go, which she said are intended to appease foreign tourists. She described the move as evidence that Britain has 'gone down the toilet'.
She also celebrated a personal milestone, achieving her first ever par at Middlesbrough Golf Course, though she admitted her golfing journey continues to have its challenges.
