Former M&S chief appointed to tackle UK youth unemployment crisis

A former chief executive of Marks & Spencer has been appointed as a government jobs adviser in its latest attempt to tackle the growing youth unemployment crisis. Marc Bolland, who oversaw the retail chain from 2010 to 2016, will lead a summit of business leaders, amid warnings that the country risks a “lost generation” without urgent intervention. About 1 million people aged 16 to 24 – about one in eight – are not in education, employment or training. An interim report published by the former health secretary Alan Milburn on Thursday warned that this cohort – known as Neets – could increase to 1.25 million by the 2030s without radical action. In light of Milburn’s findings, Bolland has been appointed as lead non-executive director at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), Downing Street said on Saturday. Bolland, who also led supermarket Morrisons, is understood to have been chosen for the role thanks to his existing involvement with the DWP via his charity Movement to Work. The government said a collaboration with Movement to Work had already helped more than 200,000 unemployed young people find jobs. The government said Bolland would work with “leading chief executives across sectors” to “create clear routes into work and tackle the longstanding challenge of youth unemployment”. It added that he would also advise the work and pensions secretary, Pat McFadden, on how the government should respond to Milburn’s findings. …