Opinion: Young people slip down Labour's agenda

But there is definitely not the same focus on youth as there was eight years ago. Then, in 1997, two of the five manifesto pledges addressed youth issues: the commitment to move 250,000 unemployed young adults from welfare to work through the New Deal, and the intention to "fast track" persistent young offenders through the courts. Both were, arguably, quite positive aspirations, whatever the criticism levelled at the operational approach to achieving them. Few young people are happy languishing on the dole; few young offenders want to wait in limbo unsure of what is going to happen to them. In this respect, those political goals were opportunity-focused: renewing the chances of young people to get vocational qualifications and a foothold in the labour market, and speeding up justice.