Jacob Solon is a recent History and Politics graduate standing in the 2026 local elections as a Conservative Councillor candidate in Camden.
Rachel Reeves’s recent budget has set to increase National Insurance contributions made by companies and increase the national living wage. Both these measures will make it much harder for young people who want to work in low skilled jobs, let alone high skilled jobs, in the foreseeable future.
The Conservative Party should be doing all in their power to oppose these policies. At the moment the youth vote for the Conservatives is shaky, however opposing these economic policies is one way to win the younger generation over.
In Reeves’s 30 October 2024 budget she outlined “policies to increase spending by almost £70bn a year over the next five years.” Part of the way she is going to do this is by increasing National Insurance contributions made by companies. She has said there will be “an increase paid by employers from 13.8pc to 15pc.” This has to led to a backlash in the form of a letter from “more than 200 hospitality bosses warning the sharp increase in National contributions are unsustainable.” These huge businesses will have to cut down jobs and close down venues. The signatories of this letter include Weatherspoon’s, Premier INN and Young’s, to name just a few.
These are prime employers for recent graduates and university students and she is making it harder for them to help themselves, through employment.
As a recent graduate who has just moved to London I want a career in public affairs. However, it is very competitive at the moment so, as well as many others my age, I will be going into hospitality. Reeves is making it harder for me and thousands of others my age who want to get such jobs by taxing employers in one of the largest tax hikes in history and risking these companies slashing employment rates.
At the same time Reeves is demanding companies pay a higher minimum wage. She has pledged that the “national living wage will rise 6.7 per cent from £11.44 to £12.21 an hour, while the apprentice minimum wage goes up 18 per cent to £7.55 an hour.”
It is obvious that increasing the national minimum wage will increase unemployment, however the huge increase in the apprentice minimum wage by 18% will damage the chances of those young people who want to gain an apprenticeship. There have already been early signs that apprentices have been let go and there has been forecasts for apprenticeships on offer reducing.
For example, “a snap survey by the British Hair Consortium (BHC), shared exclusively with FE Week which gathered responses from 1,600 hair salon owners employing a total of 3,277 apprentices, suggested 95 per cent will now cut back on hiring to save money.”
Gaining an apprenticeship is a great way for a young person to start a career and Reeves’s increasing the minimum wage reduces the numbers of apprenticeships on offer.
Like many people my age, I have worked in various different low skilled jobs including warehouses, fast food restaurants, kitchens and summer camps. These jobs have been essential in supporting myself through university and my recent move to London. I’ll still need them to make sure I can remain in London and find that career in Public Affairs. Reeves’s measures could jeopardise not just my chances for work but thousands of other people my age.
Reeves herself has had her own difficulties, as anyone else, but has never had to work any low skilled part-time jobs. Rachel’s parents put a lot of emphasis on her education, sending her to Harris Girls’ Academy Bromley, when she attended it was called Cator Park school for girls; it was far from being a “bog standard comprehensive” and is one of the highest ranked schools for academic attainment in the UK.
She then went to the University of Oxford, New College, studying PPE.
At University Reeves never worked a part-time job to get her through university as, at Oxford, term-time employment for undergraduates had to be permitted by a tutor and only in exceptional circumstances. After finishing university, she started almost straight away with the Bank of England in 2000. She also did a masters at the prestigious London School of Economics in 2003-2004 and continued to work in banking before her political career started. I wonder if she’d have put in these measures if she’d had to work in hospitality or another part time job while getting ahead?
I’d urge the Conservatives to vigorously oppose Reeves’s new economic measures.
Kemi Badenoch, the new leader of our party, worked in McDonald’s to get her through university. I remember telling Kemi at the Conservative Conference that I had also worked at McDonald’s like herself and she joked they should make it national service. She wasn’t being serious about that but there are things she can do.
There is a great opportunity for Kemi and the Conservatives to appeal to the youth vote by opposing the Government’s measures and supporting the employment of youth. If she does then in the long-term she will win over many more young people than she can count on at the moment.
