Reform UK proposes tax rebates for firms to boost apprenticeships

Young apprentices should have part of their wages paid by taxpayers, according to Reform UK plans , external aimed at delivering a "skills revolution".

The party's education spokeswoman Suella Braverman said a Reform government would introduce an "apprenticeship wage credit" offering small and medium-sized businesses a 30% rebate on the wages of apprentices they take on aged 16 to 18.

She also advised students receiving their GCSE exam results on Thursday "not to get ripped off by the great university scam" and to learn a trade instead.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he wants teenagers to have technical routes into careers that could rival the path of a traditional university degree.

The government has been introducing changes and examining ways to encourage more young people into work, including giving some parents on benefits up to £4,500 a year to encourage their children to start apprenticeships.

Former minister Alan Milburn has been tasked with investigating why so many young people are not in employment, education or training - known by the acronym Neets.

Reform said its announcement was the first in a series of proposals aimed at reaching 600,000 apprenticeship starts per year by the end of the next Parliament, likely to be 2034.

The party says it would pay for its plans by banning all foreign students from accessing taxpayer-funded loans and stopping what the party calls "Mickey Mouse degrees".