Benefit plans: Young 'already at bottom of the pile'

Thousands of young British people could miss out on tax credits and housing benefits under new government plans, the BBC has learned.

Stopping EU migrants getting benefits for four years is a key part of the UK's negotiations of its EU membership.

But the government has been told such a move would be "direct discrimination", prompting it to consider a four-year residency test from the age of 18 that would also apply to Britons.

Carole Easton, from the Women's Trust, warned that young people were "already at the bottom of the pile" and that young mothers in particular could suffer under the plans.

"If they don't work when they're young it's much harder for them to get their first foot on the ladder and not remain either on benefits or on very low pay for the rest of their lives", she added.