Experts advising government on how to tackle the ‘greatest employment challenge for a generation’ have met Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall for the first time.
At its first meeting, members of the new Labour Market Advisory Board offered new approaches to shape government work on economic inactivity, tackling the root causes for people remaining out of work such as poor physical and mental health, and how the group can help the government reach its ambition of an 80 per cent employment rate.
The Board will develop new ideas and initiatives for the Work and Pensions Secretary to consider as she sets about bringing down the levels of economic inactivity, with the UK being the only G7 country whose employment and inactivity rates haven’t returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Liz Kendall said: “Spiralling inactivity is the greatest employment challenge for a generation, with a near record 2.8 million people out of work due to long-term sickness. Addressing these challenges will take time, but we’re going to fix the foundations of the economy and tackle economic inactivity.
“The board’s knowledge, expertise and insight will help us to rebuild Britain as we deliver our growth mission, drive up opportunity and make every part of the country better off.”
Paul Gregg, Chair of the Labour Market Advisory Board said: “Having studied the UK’s labour market across several decades, it is clear that the current labour market faces a deep-seated set of challenges.
“We have seen a sharp increase in economic inactivity and long-term sickness, most notably in our young people post-pandemic. Further, real wage growth has been heavily supressed for 15 years hitting living standards and government tax revenues. Reversing these trends will be key to ensuring the long-term prosperity of the UK’s labour market.
“I look forward to working with members of the board and the Secretary of State to support her vision for growth and examining positive solutions to address inactivity and harness the true potential of the UK’s labour market.”
