An open letter to the Prime Minister calling for an opportunity guarantee

I have just signed a new open letter that has been sent to the Prime Minister from a wide range of education and employment organisations, experts and campaigners. It calls for the government to create an opportunity guarantee to help the country to manage the Covid-19 crisis. I think that it provides three very strong rallying demands for the current situation.

I reproduce the letter in full here…

Dear Prime Minister,

The unemployment figures released by the Office for National Statistics on Tuesday will reveal the biggest rise in unemployment in the UK in over a century. We are experiencing a jobs crisis greater than any that we have faced as a nation, with unemployment levels higher than the Great Depression.

We now call on the Government to publicly commit to an Opportunity Guarantee – that everyone who is unemployed will have the help that they need to get into work, with investment in the employment support, education, training and jobs to make this happen. As the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme winds down, we need to create opportunities for people to skill up, get a job and have a guaranteed role in our economic recovery.

The recovery must build the foundations for a new world of work. Through a focus on digital services, investment in green infrastructure and new technology, we will see new jobs, skills, careers & enterprise in a renewed labour market. But we will only get there by investing in the right support for people today.

The Opportunity Guarantee will:

1. Promote job creation by reducing the costs and barriers to employer hiring, and investing in the jobs that we need for the future.
2. Support people into work by doubling the capacity in services that help people access the jobs market, with greatest support for those facing disadvantage.
3. Secure opportunities for young people by ensuring that all have the choice of an education place, apprenticeship, or job.

A bold vision for the future of work coupled with these clear actions will enable regions, businesses, and households to plan their own contribution to the country’s success.

An Opportunity Guarantee must be at the heart of the Government’s solution to kickstarting economic growth for all, across our communities.

Yours sincerely,

See full list of signatories