Fall in youth unemployment due to more in full-time education

by Mark Corney

Much has been made of the fall by 9,000 in the number of unemployed 18-24 year olds.

Welcome news indeed but the presumption is they are in jobs. Nothing could be further from the truth as the number in employment also fell by 12,000.

So where have these 21,000 18-24 year olds gone?

16,000 more were economically inactive – without a job and had not looked for work – and

to complete the picture there are 5,000 fewer 18-24 year olds in the overall population

But the real story behind the figures is the continuing role of full-time education in reducing youth unemployment and inactivity.

Protecting spending on children and young people

by Mark Corney

Last week, I argued that the real story behind Budget 2012 for education and skills is how much of this part of our public services is expected to contribute to the extra real terms spending cuts of £6.5bn in 2015/16 and £10.5bn in 2016/17.

At the heart of these cuts is the battle between AME and DEL.  

Annually managed expenditure (AME) is revenue and capital spending that fluctuates with the economic cycle. Examples include debt interest and welfare spending. Departmental expenditure limits (DEL) is revenue and capital spending which can be managed over three years. Examples include most but not necessarily all spending on education and skills.

The Coalition could save the entire £10bn from AME or from DEL and, of course, a mix of both. Bearing in mind the state of the economy and the public finances, however, it is unlikely that ‘education and skills’ will be totally immune from further spending cuts.