Under the Tories, young people got a raw deal. Years of austerity, increased tuition fees, and youth unemployment hindered the prospects of young people. The pandemic and lockdowns ruined a generation of learners and harmed their prospects in the job market. Under Labour, opportunities for young people have increased and the future is looking bright.
Pay, fairness, and the value of work
One of the clearest, concrete changes is on pay. Labour is increasing disposable income for young people and giving them an opportunity to learn the value of work and the success it can bring. The government has approved a new rise in the National Minimum Wage from April 2026, including larger percentage increases for younger workers and apprentices compared with older age bands. For example, the rate for 18–20-year-olds is set to go up by around 8.5%, and 16-17-year-olds and apprentices are due a 6% increase.
Over time, Labour has committed to phasing out age-based minimum wage disparities, so that younger workers doing the same job aren’t permanently stuck on lower rates simply because of their age. This is equality and opportunity in action.
Stronger rights at work: ending exploitation and insecurity
Alongside this, Labour’s “New Deal for Working People” agenda includes plans to clamp down on exploitative zero-hours contracts, which usually impacts disproportionately on young people. In addition, Labour is strengthening protection from “fire and rehire”, again, a mechanism which has a higher impact on young people in the workplace.
Since coming into office, the Labour government has started to reshape the post-16 skills system in England. Skills England has been launched to align training with employer needs, Foundation apprenticeships have been introduced including increased funding and the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has set out reforms that include requiring colleges to deliver at least 100 hours of face-to-face English and maths teaching for students who haven’t passed GCSEs.
The overall aim is to make it easier for young people to move between school, college, apprenticeships and work without falling through the gaps, and to link courses more clearly to decent jobs – ultimately making the next generation of workers more versatile, skilled and able to adapt to the changing economic landscape.
A youth guarantee and a mission to end long-term youth unemployment
Labour went into government promising a “youth guarantee”: for all 18–21-year-olds to have access to training, an apprenticeship or help into work. Youth organisations have welcomed the focus on long-term youth unemployment and are pushing the government to extend that guarantee up to age 24.
In speeches since, multiple ministers have talked about “nothing less than the abolition of long-term youth unemployment”, tying it into their wider mission to grow the economy and raise productivity. Ending unemployment is the sacred mission of the Labour Party. Some of the employment reforms already announced include expanding Individual Placement and Support to help more people with severe mental illness into work, and reforms to Jobcentre support and conditionality as part of a wider package to “get Britain working again”.
Mental health: early help, community support, and the NHS frontier
Regarding NHS and the health of our young people, Labour are putting some plans into action. Since the pandemic, schools, social services and families have reported a significant increase in the number of young people suffering with mental health, highlighted in the commons notably by the Labour MP, Hon. Sojan Joseph MP, who was a former mental health nurse.
To counter this issue, Labour is recruiting an additional 8,500 mental health staff across children’s and adult services and are introducing hubs which are community-based: giving open-access mental health and youth support spaces for children and young people in every area.
However, one area the government needs to look to help our young people is the problem of vaping. NHS England reported in 2024, that a quarter of 11–15-year-olds have tried vaping and around one in ten are vaping regularly. This is already a serious problem among our young people, yet the government is ignoring this and instead focusing on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill which will see a generational ban on cigarettes for those born after 1st January 2009.
If the aim is to protect young people, then we should be focusing on protecting our young people now and making all of these products, including vapes, harder for young people to access. A simpler, clearer approach would be to raise the age of purchase across the board, rather than introduce a complex ban that will be harder to enforce and easier to evade.
We also need to trust young people to make their own decisions. One of the appeals of Reform, particularly to young men, is their stance on individual freedom and responsibility. Labour needs to examine this and ensure it doesn’t appear as part of that Lanyard Class so described by Lord Glasman.
Housing: renters’ rights, stability, and building homes for the next generation
With home ownership increasingly out of reach for many under-35s, Labour has put a strong emphasis on renters’ rights and building more homes. The Renters’ Rights Bill (2024–25) aims to strengthen rights in the private rented sector, including ending “no-fault” evictions and improving security of tenure. This will be of huge benefit to young people, many of whom rent as students or in preparation for home ownership.
The goal is to give young renters more stability so they can put down roots, not live in fear of sudden rent hikes or short-notice evictions. On housing supply more broadly, Labour’s growth mission includes a target to build 1.5 million new homes over the parliament which young people can buy, as well as planning reforms to accelerate building, particularly in areas of high demand. While these policies benefit all age groups, the impact is especially important for younger people locked out of ownership and stuck in expensive, insecure private renting.
Clear direction of travel, with delivery now the test
No government ever does everything young people want, and there’s plenty of criticism from youth organisations on issues like student finance, the benefits system and the pace of housing reform. But looking specifically at positive steps, the current Labour government has raised and re-shaped minimum wages in ways that especially benefit younger workers, and started a substantial overhaul of skills, apprenticeships and post-16 education.
It has also promised a youth guarantee and put youth unemployment higher up the agenda, and invested in mental health staff, youth hubs and a national youth strategy. In government, Labour has pushed for stronger renters’ rights and more house building, as well as reversed the two-child benefit cap, with big implications for children in low-income families.
How far these moves transform day-to-day life for young people will depend on how quickly promises turn into reality on the ground – but they do mark a clear shift in the policy landscape compared with a few years ago under the last Tory government.
