Things got worse
4:10pmA fact I dropped into my political column has been picked up by Iain Dale and (rightly) questioned. Could unemployment for under-25s really be worse than under the Tories? I accept, it sounds made up. Didn’t Brown piously rail against this youth unemployment and call them “Major’s children”? Hasn’t he delivered millions of new jobs in this economic boom? It’s worth responding to in full, because as this cuts to the heart of the myth of Brown’s economic “miracle”.
There’s new jobs created all right – as our immigration figures testify. But for young Britons unemployment is actually worse now (14.5%) than the day Blair stepped into office (14.3%). I’d simply updated a study which the superb Anthony Browne did for The Times a few months ago using p23 of unemployment figures released on Tuesday. The ONS have sent me the full data. The below graph shows the true story of Brown’s children. 
You can look in vain for the lasting achievement of the New Deal. Major had an excuse: recession. From Brown, all you’ll hear is silence.
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Pete
May 18th, 2007 6:02pm Report this commentBut the point of the new deal was long term youth unemployment, not youth unemployment per se. The second sentence of Brown's speech announcing it: "It's the labour government's 1998 new year's resolution for britain - to help our long-term unemployed back to work and to give them the skills they need." Obviously, the fact that youth unemployment has risen sharply in the past 18 months is hardly something to be proud of... but it's not the decisive yardstick of the new deal either. Have you got the long term youth unemployment figures?
Fraser Nelson
May 18th, 2007 6:44pm Report this commentIt's a disaster too, I'm afraid. Up 55% over the last two years to 90,000 people (unemployed for 12 months or more, in 18-24 age group).
Unity
May 18th, 2007 6:45pm Report this commentMy my, Fraser. You and Dale are like two peas in a pod at the moment. Congratulations on extracting one statistic from Frank Field's report on New Deal for Reform - some argument. That's the report I've eviscerated here, by the way. http://www.ministryoftruth.org.uk/2007/05/15/frankonomics/ Field's report is rubbish, by the way, but if you care to take the time to get someone who understands economics to look over the expanded analysis I've provided, then you may learn a few things of value. As far as econo-bloggers from the right go, I'd recommend 'Wat Tyler' of Burning Your Money - he knows his stuff.
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