Diane Abbott, the Shadow Health Minister and MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, has slammed the Government’s economic decisions, as youth unemployment hits a record high. Hackney North and Stoke Newington has seen a 80.6% increase in the number of 18-24-year-old young people claiming for over 6 months.

Says Diane: 'This is terrible news for young people in Hackney. Since January there has been a 80.6% rise in young people on the dole for over six months in Hackney. 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. Labour’s youth jobs fund, paid for by a tax on Banker’s bonuses, could get young people back into work. We need to get people back to work and off benefits. 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. 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.'

In the UK, youth unemployment now stands at 1,016,000 (1.02 million) in the three months to September. This is the highest level since comparable records began in 1992. In London as a whole, the number of people in employment has fallen by 24,000 on the previous quarter. Unemployment has increased by 4,000 in the previous quarter and currently stands at 410,000 The number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance increased by 1,600 on the previous month in London.