Milburn Review: Under-25s to Lose PIP and Sickness Benefits in Radical Welfare Overhaul
Some under-25s should get less in benefits under a radical overhaul recommended by a government-commissioned review, with young people moved off the two main sickness and disability payments and on to a new youth allowance instead. The Milburn review under-25s benefits proposals, first reported by The Times on 11 November and set out by the BBC on 12 November 2026, would bar 18- to 24-year-olds from claiming Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and the health element of Universal Credit, even if they already claim them.
Alan Milburn, the former Labour health secretary who led the year-long review, has not hidden the cost. He told The Times the changes would not be pain-free, and that some young people could receive less financial support than they do today, at least at the start of a claim.
The review is due to be published on Tuesday 17 November 2026. The government is set to take its recommendations forward into legislation in the new year, and the BBC reports that Prime Minister Andy Burnham is likely to back them.
Milburn Review — Quick Reference Summary
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Review | Independent review of youth unemployment and young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) |
| Author | Alan Milburn, former Labour health secretary and MP for Darlington (1992–2010) |
| Published | Tuesday 17 November 2026 |
| Who is affected | Young people aged 18 to 24 claiming sickness and disability benefits |
| Benefits removed | Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and the health element of Universal Credit |
| Replacement | A new youth allowance, paid at the standard Universal Credit rate |
| Extra support | A new additional cost allowance for some; a higher-rate benefit for the most severely disabled |
| Employment support | Billions of pounds for work placements, job subsidies and one-to-one personal advisers |
| Next step | Government legislation expected in the new year; exact amounts not clear until then |
Milburn review under-25s benefits: the changes in detail
At the heart of the review is a proposal to take under-25s off the health element of Universal Credit and off PIP. In their place would come a new youth allowance, paid at the basic rate of Universal Credit, with a separate additional cost allowance for some claimants.
The additional cost allowance would cover day-to-day costs linked to a disability, such as assistance, mobility, specialist transport or daily living support. It would go to people with significant, well-established and ongoing costs, and to a smaller group than the roughly 430,000 young people aged 16 to 24 who currently claim PIP in England and Wales.
The most severely disabled people would be treated separately. Those with profound and lifelong conditions who can never be expected to work would receive a new benefit paid at a higher rate than current disability benefits, with no waiting period.
The change would cover existing claimants as well as new ones, Milburn confirmed to The Times. That matters because it means people on the protected, higher rate of the Universal Credit health element would lose that protection too.
A youth allowance at the standard Universal Credit rate
At current rates, a single person under 25 receives £338.58 a month as the standard Universal Credit allowance. The health element adds £429.80 a month for existing claimants, or £217.26 a month for claims made since April 2026, while PIP at the enhanced rate of both its components pays up to £194.60 a week.
Under the Milburn plan, the youth allowance would replace all of that with the standard rate alone, apart from the additional cost allowance for those who qualify. The review has not yet published what the additional cost allowance would pay, who exactly would qualify for it, or when it would start.
Milburn’s argument is that the money saved should be redirected into getting young people into work. His review puts the balance starkly: for every £25 spent keeping young people on benefits, only £1 is spent helping them get into work.
The scale of the problem: nearly a million young people outside work and training
The review was commissioned to tackle the growing number of young people not in education, employment or training. Office for National Statistics figures for April to June 2026 put that group at 981,000 people aged 16 to 24, or 13 per cent of the age group, up 30,000 on a year earlier.
Around one in eight 18- to 24-year-olds falls into the category. Of the roughly four million people claiming PIP in England and Wales, around 430,000 are aged 16 to 24, according to the BBC.
Milburn’s interim report, published in May 2026, found that 19 per cent of young people claiming disability or health benefits were in work. The review also proposes Danish-style flexi-jobs, which would let disabled workers set their hours from as little as four hours a week, and “job carving”, which splits entry-level roles into tasks matched to what a person can do.
The wider bill is also rising. Office for Budget Responsibility figures cited by The Telegraph put annual welfare expenditure at £333 billion this year, increasing to £407 billion by the end of the decade.
Why Milburn argues the system traps young people
Milburn’s case is that the current system puts benefits before work, and that the order should be reversed. He told the BBC that hundreds of thousands of young people are stuck in a benefit system that traps them in poverty and gives them no prospect of a job.
He framed the choice as one between short-term finances and long-term life chances. In his view, the current system prioritises immediate financial support over a young person’s future prospects, and that is the wrong choice.
The review pairs its extra employment support with conditions. Young people would be expected to engage with the work support on offer, and those who do not could ultimately lose some of their benefits. Milburn put it plainly: a deal is not a deal unless there are potential consequences, and entitlements and responsibilities are two sides of the same coin.
Who would be protected — and what the trade-offs are
The sharpest trade-off is money. Milburn has openly acknowledged that some young people will receive less under the proposed arrangements, particularly at the beginning of their benefit claims. The exact amounts will not be clear until early next year, when the government publishes legislation to put the changes into effect.
The clearest protection is for the most severely disabled, who would move to a higher-rate benefit with no waiting period. Others with significant ongoing costs could qualify for the additional cost allowance, although its value and eligibility rules have not been published.
The proposals also raise questions for Scotland, where responsibility for some benefits is devolved, and for the timetable itself. The BBC reports that rebuilding the system from scratch could take almost a decade before the state sees monetary savings, and that the new system will need significant investment first.
It is also worth noting that this is not the only welfare change under way. The Department for Work and Pensions is separately rolling out new powers to carry out DWP bank checks on benefit claimants, while Parliament continues to debate the government’s welfare bill.
What happens next: legislation in the new year
The full review lands on Tuesday 17 November 2026, when the detail behind the headlines — including the value of the additional cost allowance and the transitional arrangements for existing claimants — should become public.
The government is then expected to bring forward legislation in the new year. Parliament has already refused a similar PIP change once, so the proposals are likely to face a difficult passage, and charities and disability groups are expected to challenge the scale of the cuts.
For the nearly one million young people outside work and training, the review promises a different deal: less cash support up front, more help finding work, and consequences for those who do not take it up. Whether that bargain holds will be decided in the months after publication.
Your questions on the Milburn review, answered
Q: Will under-25s lose PIP under the Milburn review?
A: If the recommendations become law, yes. Young people under 25 would no longer be able to claim PIP or the health element of Universal Credit, and would instead receive a new youth allowance at the standard Universal Credit rate.
Q: What is the youth allowance?
A: It is the proposed replacement payment for under-25s, set at the standard Universal Credit rate. A separate additional cost allowance would help some people meet disability-related costs, and the most severely disabled would receive a higher-rate benefit instead.
Q: Would existing claimants be affected?
A: Yes. Milburn confirmed to The Times that the change would hit existing claimants as well as new ones, including people on the protected rate of the Universal Credit health element.
Q: When would the changes take effect?
A: Not immediately. The review is published on 17 November 2026, and the government is expected to bring forward legislation in the new year. Exact amounts and start dates will not be clear until that legislation is published.
Q: Who would still get extra support?
A: People with the most severe, profound and lifelong disabilities who can never be expected to work would receive a new higher-rate benefit with no waiting period. Others with significant, ongoing disability-related costs could qualify for the additional cost allowance.
