Investment needed to ‘Get Britain Working’

Responding to the government’s Get Britain Working White Paper (see page 22), TUC general secretary Paul Novak said it was right to focus on creating more good quality and secure jobs, investing in public services, and ensuring that young people who are seeking work are helped to find a job or training.

The TUC highlighted the latest labour market data from the Office for National Statistics showing that vacancies fell by 35,000, the 28th monthly fall in a row; youth unemployment rose to 13.7%, the highest rate since 2020, with the number of young people in long-term unemployment increasing by 83% over the past year; and high levels of inactivity due to long-term sickness, at 2.78 million.

But Nowak said success would also depend on ministers “making the investment that’s needed” in health services and quality jobs. And he said Jobcentre staff “must have a central role in redesigning their services”.

The PCS public and commercial services union expressed disappointment that work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall had announced the White Paper without consulting the union.

It added that while the government claimed its proposals were the first step in tackling economic inactivity, “in reality, this signals a continuation of the previous government’s concerted attack on the poorest and the most vulnerable members of society”.