Burnham Brings an End to Blair’s University Vision
28th July 2026
Andy Burnham will argue that Sir Tony Blair’s drive to get half of school leavers to attend university has “let down” a generation of young people.
Unveiling his plan to tackle youth unemployment on Tuesday, the Prime Minister will say that under his leadership Britain will “value the hard hat every bit as much as the graduation cap”.
Mr Burnham’s intervention, a rejection of three decades of policy, comes amid a surge in spending on youth sickness benefits and concerns that students are being saddled with thousands of pounds of debt after studying poor-quality courses.