The minister has impressed the youth sector since replacing Margaret Hodge after May's general election. She's been doing the rounds of summer receptions organised by the likes of the National Children's Bureau, and much of the improvement in the youth green paper between draft and final document has been attributed to her.
A key proposal in Youth Matters is the opportunity card, which gives every young person a one-off payment of 12, and a monthly top-up of 10 to 12 for disadvantaged young people. Other people, including parents, can add to top-ups.
They have been dubbed "ID cards by the back door" in some quarters. "That's nonsense," says Hughes. "Opportunity cards aren't compulsory. And they won't be developed to the high specifications proposed for ID cards."
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