SUBC: Will Benefit Changes Hurt Young People?

Young people have claimed that plans to make 18 to 21-year-olds work for their benefits amount to "slave labour" - and are calling on the Government to find alternative solutions which tackle youth unemployment.

Contributors to Sky's Stand Up Be Counted campaign believe young adults need a wage that will help them to live, not just survive, as people who are out of employment, education or training could be earning less than £2 an hour under David Cameron's plans to clampdown on benefits.

In a video uploaded to the SUBC website, Chris Robertson said: "The Government are forcing our hand. We're not all in this together.

"And let's not forget those who are sitting pretty and able to dodge tax on their high wages just by placing it in a Swiss bank account. I pay tax fair and square, and they can't."

Another contributor, Piers Telemacque, believes the Prime Minister's plans to get young people earning or learning is "all well and good", but warned many are already struggling to stay in education or employment.

"He's cut EMA, he's tripled tuition fees and massively cut funding for FE colleges. Yes, I agree that youth unemployment and we need to do something about it, but this is not the right course of action - all you're doing is pushing people further and further into poverty," Piers urged.

The NUS representative also claimed that the policy could actually hamper job creation in Britain, because the lower cost of labour would remove the incentive for companies to hire new talent.

"It's less politically damaging to attack us. Why? Because our voter turnout is lower," Piers added.