Milburn review expected to propose lower benefits for some under-25s

A government-commissioned review is expected to recommend replacing key sickness and disability benefits for under-25s with a lower basic allowance, with extra support for some people with health-related costs and higher payments for those with severe disabilities who cannot work.

Alan Milburn, a former health secretary, is due to publish the year-long review on Tuesday. The government is expected to take its proposals into legislation in the new year, although the recommendations have not yet been published or enacted.

Under the proposed system, young people would no longer be able to claim the health element of Universal Credit or Personal Independence Payment (PIP). Instead, they would receive an allowance at the basic Universal Credit rate. Some could qualify for a new allowance for additional costs linked to their conditions.

Milburn told The Times that some people could initially receive less financial support than under the current system. He said the proposals would affect both existing and new claimants, and argued that policy should prioritise young people’s longer-term prospects over their immediate finances.

The review is also expected to propose billions of pounds in investment in employment support, including work placements, job subsidies and personal advisers. Milburn has said it could take almost a decade for the state to see financial savings, as the new system would require significant investment.

The review is intended to help address the number of young people not in education, employment or training. Office for National Statistics figures cited by the BBC put the latest total at 981,000, or about one in eight 18- to 24-year-olds in the UK.

Milburn has argued that benefit entitlements should come with responsibilities, saying some young people could lose part of their support if they did not engage with employment services. The government said it would maintain a safety net for the most vulnerable and people unable to work, while backing a wholesale change in support for young people.

The proposals could prove contentious among Labour MPs, some of whom opposed welfare reforms under former prime minister Keir Starmer. The review’s recommendations remain proposals; Parliament has yet to consider legislation.