Mark is urging the new coalition Government not to cut support for jobs as figures just released show that unemployment in Edinburgh North and Leith is now 2, 747 or 4.6% of the adult working population as opposed to 4.8% in February.

The Future Jobs Fund created by the last Government has created over 15,400 jobs for young people in Scotland. But the new coalition government has decided to scrap the scheme.

Mark believes the latest figures show we are not out of the woods yet and now is the wrong time to cut support for the economy and help for people looking for work.

For the latest (May 2010) figures for the number of JSA claimants and other information on the present state of the local economy in Edinburgh North and Leith click here.

Mark said:

“The previous Labour government was determined not to repeat the mistakes made by the Conservatives in past recessions when young unemployed people were just left to fend for themselves as best they could.

“That’s why I strongly backed the Future Jobs Fund and I visited Leith Jobcentre Plus in February where I heard first-hand from staff about the positive impact it was having. [Opposite is a photo from Mark’s visit to Leith Jobcentre – to read more click here.]

“Unemployment is slightly lower this month and it’s still half the level of the recessions in the 80s and 90s because of the action the previous government took.

“But it is still too high. Before the election, both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats pledged to protect the Fund. The new Government has made great play of cutting waste in the public sector but the Future Jobs Fund has been a real success and the Government should not just turn its back on young people out of work.”

In the last Parliament Mark raised the issue of how many jobs the Fund had created in Scotland so as to pin down just how successful it had been. The 15,400 jobs created in Scotland were in a wide range of organisations such as local councils and voluntary organisations.

They were paid the minimum wage and matched young unemployed people to work that needed to be done in local areas across the country. To read Mark’s questions and the replies from the then Government click here and here.