The Conservative Party announced plans to restrict universal credit payments to young people immediately after leaving school, aiming to encourage employment and apprenticeship participation. The policy, unveiled ahead of the party’s conference, targets individuals under 25 who have not maintained six months of continuous work.

Under the new scheme, young people without a job or apprenticeship could only receive a “get to work allowance” after completing a six-month program demonstrating active job searching. This program would include mandatory activities such as daily attendance at job centres, participation in work experience placements, or job interview workshops. Each participant would be assigned a “get to work manager” tasked with supporting their transition into employment.

The Conservatives describe the initiative as an exercise in “tough love,” designed to prevent behaviours that may discourage young people from entering the workforce. The party also outlined plans for reducing universal credit payments for claimants without jobs to 70 percent of their previous entitlement, a measure intended to incentivize work over benefit reliance.

The policy emerges amid concerns over the number of young people not engaged in education, employment, or training (Neet), a figure estimated at around one million. The party suggests these reforms will help break what it terms a “toxic cycle,” improving economic outcomes by encouraging young adults to secure jobs or apprenticeships rather than relying on benefits.

Critics, including Helen Whately, the shadow work and pensions secretary, challenged the Conservative approach. Whately highlighted the UK’s Neet rate as worse than that of Greece and attributed the issue partly to job losses linked to policies under the previous Labour government. She argued that many young people leave school and immediately rely on benefits, describing this as both wasted potential and detrimental to the economy.

The Conservative proposals are viewed as a strategic move to pressure local leaders, including Andy Burnham, who has been urged to address spending and the increasing number of young people on disability benefits. The party claims the scheme’s requirements and support would be enforced as soon as a young person applies for benefits, with the goal of fostering greater responsibility and engagement with the labour market among youth.

The full details of the policy are expected to be further elaborated during the upcoming Conservative conference.