More than 500,000 under-35s in UK out of work due to long-term illness

Mental health problems affected more than a third of under-35s out of work, according to the ONS survey. Photograph: Tunatura/Getty Images/iStockphoto

More than half a million young people in the UK say they are out of work due to long-term illness, a 44% increase in just four years.

Data from the Office for National Statistics shows that more than 560,000 people aged between 16 and 34 were economically inactive – meaning they were not in work or seeking work – in the first three months of 2023 due to long-term sickness.