The Office for National Statistics has announced today new figures for unemployment in the UK.
From this data it appears that youth unemployment has hit 1million.
Commenting on today’s unemployment statistics, Sheila Gilmore MP said:
“This is terrible news for young people in Edinburgh. Since January there has been a 60% rise in young people on the dole for over six months in Edinburgh. The real worry will be that we are seeing the scar of long term youth unemployment return to our area.
“Labour’s 5 point plan for jobs and growth would get our area moving again. We need to get people back to work and off benefits, or the scar of unemployment will do long term damage. At the moment we are stuck in a vicious cycle, with more people on benefits and out of work the deficit is harder to get down.”
Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Liam Byrne said:
“Today the government have been given a million reasons to change course on the economy. The brutal price our young people are paying for this government’s economic policy is now crystal clear. The verdict is in: this government is failing an entire generation. Whoever the government tries to blame, the fact is Britain’s economic recovery was choked off a year ago and unemployment started rising again well before the recent eurozone crisis. Their decision to cut too far and too fast is hurting and just not working.”
