UK has wealthy Europe’s ‘third-highest’ rate of young adults not in work or study

Resolution Foundation report says ‘crisis’ stems from rising ill-health and a failing system of benefits and job support

Britain has the third-highest rate of young people not in work or education among Europe’s richest countries because of rising ill-health and a failing system of benefits and job support, a report has warned.

The Resolution Foundation thinktank said the UK was facing a “crisis” in youth jobs amid a dramatic rise in the number of 16- to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (Neets) to almost 1 million – the highest level in more than a decade.