NEET stats mask long-term problems

“It’s good news on the face of it that the number (728,000) of young people not in education, employment or training is at a record low. However, this masks longer-term problems that are storing up. Young people currently in education will need a job when they leave, long-term unemployment is increasing and there are significant ethnic and other disparities in employment that need to be addressed. This risks leaving young people from marginalised backgrounds at the back of the queue for jobs as the economy opens up.”