An article this morning titled 'Unemployment surges to 17-year high' - reading time 3 minutes reports - reports the total number of unemployed in Britain increased by 27,000 in the three months ended January, 2011 to just over 2.5 million, and that is the highest number unemployed since 1994.  The reported unemployment rate is 8%, with a quoted youth jobless rate of 20.6% (up almost 1% in the same quarter.  The number of people classed as 'economically inactive' increased to over 9.3 million, which includes 2.3 million 'looking after a family'.  The U.K. population is estimated at about 62 million.  Brendan Barber, General Secretary of the U.K. Trades Union Congress is reported as saying "job recovery is still some way off", and "This Government's economic policies risk is making high joblessness a permanent feature of our economy.  It must change course before it's too late."

Of all of this, it is the over 20% youth unemployment figure that jumps out at me.  I have said in a number of prior e-mails that governments must address the issue of youth unemployment, or risk social disruption.  People of all ages need to be active and engaged.  I think for a country not to be structured so as to provide an opportunity for youth employment is doing nothing but buying into future problems.