Rising Youth Unemployment…

Today is a lovely Sunday, but I am feeling distressed by the rising high unemployment rates, especially amongst the 16 to 24-year-olds. Unless this scary issue is resolved, I think it is going to be, as detailed in my recent post, a youth unemployment time bomb. Even for the United Kingdom, the youth unemployment has hit 20.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 or close to a million youths amongst Gen Y, the Millennial Generation.

The UK Is Not Alone…

Of course the UK is not alone in this dilemma. There are 17 other countries within the EU 27 countries with youth unemployment rates higher than that suffered by the UK, including Greece, Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Sweden and Belgium. The fragile economies in these countries further undermine the prospects for plausible solutions of the crisis. If left unresolved, social instability is a likely outcome. There is growing fear that this generation will suffer a loss of self esteem and carry permanent scars and the worst legacy of the baby boomer generation. Sadly, despite the many vocal and physical evidence surrounding the issue, few concrete solutions have been taken.

Ladder For London Campaign…

The Ladder for London Campaign by the Evening Standard launched last September is, in my opinion, a real public-spirited effort to do something concrete. The campaign aims to help the estimated 120,000 unemployed youths in London to gain work through paid apprenticeships by 'appealing to companies large, medium and small to take on an apprentice and help get young London working'. There are 300,000 companies in London which employ people in London, and they collectively possess the financial resources to do so. The results, I feel, could be exponential, but unfortunately not. 

The Next Battle Of Trafalgar…

My amateur knowledge of history, and specifically that of the stoic British people, tells me that the Evening Standard type of campaign can succeed when the entire nation muster its resolve to do so. Perhaps what is needed now is one battle cry, one that is similar to what the great Admiral Lord Nelson signalled to his fleet and his men just before the Battle of Trafalgar. His famous flag signal "England expects that every man will do his duty" may be modified to something akin to "The United Kingdom espects that every company and its government will do its duty". It is the next Battle of Trafalgar that must be won, not only over youth unemployment, but its national unemployment. And so must the other countries looking for economic survival. 

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• Youth Unemployment Time Bomb