{
  "id": 14357243,
  "title": "Exclusive: Healey looks to lower business costs of hiring Neets",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/14/exclusive-healey-looks-to-lower-business-costs-of-hiring-neets",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-14T03:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "City AM",
    "slug": "city-am",
    "url": "https://www.cityam.com/exclusive-healey-looks-to-lower-business-costs-of-hiring-neets/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Chancellor John Healey is reportedly planning to lower the hiring costs for businesses when recruiting under-25-year-olds at the upcoming Budget, as he aims to address the youth unemployment crisis. The government hopes that this measure, possibly announced in the Budget on October 28th, will encourage more businesses to hire young people, known as Neets (Not in Employment, Education, or Training). Possible options include extending reliefs on employers' National Insurance contributions (NICs) or offering a tax holiday for a certain period after hiring a young person. Currently, employers don't have to pay NICs on hires under the age of 21.\n\nBusiness chiefs have urged Healey to tackle the cost of hiring young employees to reverse the rise in youth unemployment since the pandemic. According to the Confederation of British Industry and other leading industry groups, a reduction in NICs could incentivize businesses to recruit more young people. The Budget is expected to precede the completion of Alan Milburn's review into the Neets crisis, which is set to provide recommendations on reforming the welfare system and encouraging young people to take up jobs.\n\nThe proposed measure is likely to face scrutiny from economists, who argue that the government should cut spending to narrow the deficit. For example, an extension of NICs relief to all under-25-year-olds could cost about £5bn a year, according to the Resolution Foundation. Healey could also potentially benefit from a significant windfall if he successfully lowers unemployment and reduces the number of young people claiming benefits. An interim report suggested that the Neets crisis costs the UK economy around £125bn a year, including £3.2bn in direct tax revenue and £3.2bn on direct benefits spending. Economists at EY predicted that an improvement in the labour market could enhance the outlook for public finances, potentially increasing Healey's fiscal headroom to around £40bn.",
  "summary": "Chancellor John Healey is drawing up measures to slash the cost of hiring under-25-year-olds at the Budget, City AM understands, as the government looks to tackle the crisis of youth unemployment and ease pressures facing businesses. A move to tackle the number of young people not in employment, education or training (Neets) by reducing hiring [...]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}