UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailUnemployed Brits have “ample opportunities for people to get on and get ahead in the world of work”, claim Jeremy Hunt and Mel Stride – but is this an accurate picture? In the latest push to tackle unemployment rates, the Tories’ £2.5billion Back to Work plan targets those who claim benefits without work for reasons such as long-term sickness or disability, and increases minimum working hours for Universal Credit claimants.In a joint op-ed today for the Times, the work and pensions secretary and the Chancellor write: “We’ve been clear that unemployment benefits should only be there as a safety net, not a lifestyle choice.”The chancellor and work and pensions secretary wrote that while “times have undeniably been tough”, they suggested that “the economic picture is far better than many would have you believe”, pointing to the 900,000 job vacancies across the UK as a sign.Despite the chancellor’s optimism, the latest ONS data shows that work availability has continued to fall for the past two years, with current vacancies estimated to be 31.1 per cent lower than the March-May 2022 peak of 1.3m. The figure has plummeted by 17.1 per cent in the past year alone, from 1,086,000 to 898,000, with 13 out of 18 sectors seeing fewer openings in the past year. If you’re looking for a job in the food industry, IT and comms, or the arts, you’ll find opportunities disappearing faster than in other sectors.Arts, entertainment and recreation have taken the hardest blow, at -34.5 per cent fewer vacancies now than the same period last year (February to April 2023). Jobs in accommodation and food services, in addition to retail, are down by a fifth. These sectors are typically more active when people have more disposable income and are likely continuing to feel the squeeze from the cost-of-living crisis. But some other sectors which require a level of qualification also have fewer and fewer opportunities. Information and communication vacancies, which range from IT positions to PR, are down by a quarter (-25.2 per cent) from this time last year, and have been broadly falling since mid-2022. Professional vacancies in science and technical fields are also down by a fifth in this period (-19.6 per cent), despite the Prime Minister’s push for the UK to become a ”science superpower”.Real estate is the only sector to see a substantial boost in available jobs, with 30 per cent new vacancies compared to this time last year.Young people struggling to find workWhile unemployment overall has risen to 4.3 per cent, younger groups are facing some of the fastest-rising rates.Over-18s actively seeking employment are facing hurdles, with unemployment at 11.2 per cent among 18-24 year olds in January to March this year. The ONS estimates that 326,000 young professionals (25-34 year olds) are currently unemployed in the UK, up by 21.1 per cent in the same period in 2023, with the unemployment rate at 4.2 per cent. While some young people are “sick of working hard for no money” and have missed out on key office life due to the pandemic, some studies have suggested that millennials are “the hardest working generation”. So why might these generations be struggling to get into work?Lack of clarity on pay, hours and job securityThough the ministers’ claim that there are nearly 900,000 (898,000) job vacancies is correct, it lacks key information about the jobs themselves: salaries, hours, or whether the contracts are permanent/temporary.With 1.49m people in unemployment across the UK – and 166,000 of those becoming unemployed in the last quarter alone – the available vacancies could only meet 60 per cent of the workforce. But even then, is this accurate?Since it is unclear whether the vacancies are for full-time contracts, or what salary they offer, it is not reasonable to argue that the shrinking pool of vacancies will solve the problem of unemployment, since it is not possible to say whether the roles would enable people to support themselves and their dependents full-time.More than a million people across the UK are currently on zero-hours contracts, where a worker does not have guaranteed hours or income, and which have faced controversy due to the lack of financial security and stability for employees. The latest ONS data in May shows that a quarter of zero-hours workers are ‘underemployed’, meaning they want to work more hours than they currently have.Labour previously said that it will abolish zero-hours contracts, later changing its position to say it would retain an opt-in option.A further 1.45m people are on temporary contracts, with 21.2 per cent saying they took the job because they could not find a permanent position. The job vacancy shortfall is likely to be greater than the raw numbers suggest as a proportion of the 898,000 job vacancies will be temporary, part-time or for zero-hours contracts. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak is facing a backlash over “irresponsible” plans to ban sex education for children under nine while limiting it for children under 13.The prime minister has been accused of using children as a “political football” over plans to ban all sex education in primary schools until year five. Lessons would then focus simply on conception and birth, with no explicit discussions of sexual acts until they are 13 and over, according to reports.Domestic violence, coercive control and sexual violence would also not be discussed until children reach 13 under the guidance, due to be announced by education secretary Gillian Keegan. Children would also not be taught about contraception, sexually transmitted infections, and abortion until age 13.Rishi Sunak is facing a backlash over plans to ban sex education for children in schools More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailWatch as Rishi Sunak faced Sir Keir Starmer at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, 15 May, as age limits are set to be imposed for the first time on when children can be taught about sex education.According to a report in the Times, schools will be told not to teach children any form of sex education until year 5, when pupils are aged nine.Education secretary Gillian Keegan is also set to announce measures preventing children from being taught they can change their gender identity, and rules out any explicit conversations about sex until they are aged 13, the newspaper said.Lessons about contraception, sexually transmitted infections, and abortion would also not be taught until this age.The new proposals would not make “that much of a difference,” an education expert told the BBC.Rebecca Leek, head of the Suffolk Primary Headteachers’ Association, told Radio 4’s Today programme that sex education is usually not taught in schools until pupils are in year six and parents are able to withdraw their children if they want to.Existing guidance says primary school-aged children should be taught about different types of families and healthy relationships, while those in secondary school should be taught more complex topics such as puberty, sexual relationships, consent, unsafe relationships, and online harms. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak was warned today that his culture war strategy will “not save the Tories” as Sir Keir Starmer brutally mocked him in prime minister’s questions (PMQs) as “a jumped up milk monitor”.The Labour leader went on the attack over plans to ban “rainbow lanyards” in the civil service, as leading pollsters questioned the Tory strategy as the government unveiled plans to ban explicit sex education in schools until children turn 13, and all gender identity lessons.This latest foray into the culture wars followed a major speech on Monday by the common sense minister Esther McVey unveiling new civil service rules to end so-called “woke activism” in Whitehall and other departments, including an attempt to ban rainbow lanyards.Added to that ministers also unveiled new stop and search powers for police to tackle knife crime.The new strategy comes after the Techne UK weekly tracker poll recently showed Labour’s lead increase to 24 points over the Tories in the wake of Dover MP Natalie Elphicke’s defection over the small boats crisis. Pollsters told The Independent that the strategy would not work and Mr Sunak needs to somehow get his message on the economy over to voters instead.Rishi Sunak has appeared to turn to a culture war strategy More

Nigel Farage has suggested it is unlikely that he will join the Conservative Party after Jacob Rees-Mogg revealed that he wanted the Tories to join forces with both him and members of Reform UK.“It’s just not going to happen because Rishi [Sunak] is not bold, he has no leadership whatsoever,” Mr Farage said, responding to the idea on GB News.The former Ukip leader went on to add that the “vast majority” of Conservative MPs have “no courage” and “no vision”.“This will not happen, even though Jacob [Rees-Mogg] thinks it’s a frightfully good idea.” More

Sunak in ‘war against lanyards’, Starmer jokes after rainbow colours banned in civil serviceSign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak faced off against Sir Keir Starmer in the first PMQs since ENatalie Elphicke’s defection last week. The Prime Minister was branded by Starmer a “jumped up-milk monitor” obsessed with “confiscating lanyards”. The Labour leader accused the PM of trying to grant high-risk criminals early release, but Mr Sunak told MPs serious offenders would not be freed from jail early as part of a Government bid to cut overcrowding.The SNP’s Westminster leader, Stephen Flynn, demanded that Sunak apologises for comparing Scottish people to war criminal Vladimir Putin. PMQs came amid a fresh crackdown on culture war issues, with a ban to be introduced on children under nine being taught sex education and about gender identity. Policing minister Chris Philp said the new measures are expected to come into force soon. Speaking today, he also called on police forces to increase the use of stop and search as part of tougher measures to tackle knife crime. Show latest update 1715784702PM’s sex education plan to spark homophobia in schools, critics say Salma Ouaguira15 May 2024 15:511715784109Rishi Sunak ‘shocked’ by Slovak PM shooting The incident took place in the town of Handlova, some 150 kilometres northeast of the capital Bratislava, after a government meeting.Rishi Sunak has taken to social media to send his support to the Slovak PM. Salma Ouaguira15 May 2024 15:411715783519’Sex education restriction is ill-informed and war noise,’ schools’ unions sayThe National Education says there are many areas of concern in the new sex education restrictions.The crackdown hasn’t been well received among unions who claim education about sex and about positive relationships is already being delivered in an age-appropriate way. The Union’s general secretary Daniel Kebede has accused the “ill-informed” PM of causing culture war noise. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak’s government is reported to be planning a ban on children being taught about gender identity and having “explicit” conversations about sex before the age of 13.In an apparent doubling down on so-called culture war issues, the government is reportedly set to publish new guidance on when children should be offered sex education, with schools required to provide parents with samples of the material their children will be taught.The guidance will tell teachers to focus on “biological” facts about sex and will warn that ministers view gender identity as a contested subject, and will ban all sex education until year five, when children are aged nine or over, according to a series of reports.The government is reportedly set to publish new guidance on when children should be offered sex education More

Sir Keir Starmer joked that Rishi Sunak was on the front line of the “war against lanyards” after Esther McVey announced a ban on rainbow colours on the items if they are worn in the civil service.The “minister for common sense” said other “random” lanyards would not be allowed part of a new series of measures for a Tory “war on woke” .Ms McVey told the right-wing Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) think tank lanyards should be a “standard design.”“Working in the civil service is all about leaving your political views at the building entrance,” she added. More