Government policy for unemployment “very dangerous”

The coalition government’s approach to dealing with unemployment could come back to haunt it, according to one expert.

Stephen Overall, associate director of the Work Foundation, raised concerns about the closure of key recruitment programmes such as the Future Jobs Fund and the rate of joblessness in the UK, suggesting there will be a problem in years to come.

In particular, he observed that the government appeared to be bringing a number of schemes to an end in light of large-scale public sector cuts, but did not have a plan for where new jobs are going to come from.

Mr Overall said: "I think it is a very dangerous strategy to pursue and the risk is that the Conservatives become identified with high unemployment once more."

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His comments follow a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which stated that it expects the rate of joblessness to remain at nearly eight per cent until the end of 2011.

By Ross George