Concerns raised by Richard Foord over retail giants

Honiton and Sidmouth MP Richard Foord raised concerns during a parliamentary debate on youth unemployment.

He argued that the automation of retail roles is reducing opportunities for young people, particularly those seeking their first job.

The debate followed the release of a Government report by former health secretary Alan Milburn, which found nearly one million people aged 16 to 24 in the UK are not in education, employment or training (NEET).

Mr Foord told the Commons: "Many young people get their first job on the checkouts.

"The boss of Next, Lord Wolfson, said that two years ago, Next received ten applications for every job vacancy, but that number has since risen to 19 applications per vacancy.

"He said nothing about how retailers have stripped out jobs at checkouts.

"Next made a profit of over £1 billion last year.

"Does the Minister accept that retailers also have a responsibility to create opportunities for young people?"

Andrew Western, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, responded during the debate, agreeing that retailers do have such a responsibility.

Speaking after the debate, Mr Foord said: "Parents want their children to grow up to have a fulfilling job that will afford them independence.

"Yet we keep hearing that young people are locked out of the job market, due to increasing automation, the growing use of artificial intelligence, and dehumanised recruitment processes that weed out applications.

"It is a bit rich for Conservative peer Lord Wolfson – the boss of Next – to get his excuses in first.

"Retail giants like Next, and the big supermarkets could afford to take on more young people if they were serious about it.

"Tesco made annual profits of over £3 billion in 2024/25.

"These retail giants don’t seem interested in affording young people the chance to get early work experience, in the way that retailers used to.

"This is quite wrong."

He also highlighted the impact of recent increases in business rates and national insurance, saying they have "made it tougher – especially for small businesses that are just about scraping by."