Plaid Welcome Fall in Welsh Unemployment Figures
14/11/2012
New apprenticeships will help young people find future work
The Party of Wales Shadow Economy Minister Alun Ffred Jones, has welcomed figures published today which showed a fall of 5,000 in the number of people unemployed in Wales, taking the new figure to 121,000.
However, the Welsh unemployment rate of 8.2% is still the highest of the four UK countries, which average at 7.8%.
The Party of Wales Shadow Economy Minister Alun Ffred Jones said:
“Falling unemployment is good news for the Welsh economy, especially with the numbers in work rising.
“However, Wales still has the highest unemployment rate of the UK countries and there are still nearly 50,000 more people looking for work in Wales now than there were five years ago when the recession began.
“Youth unemployment has been a particular problem, with Wales again having a higher rate of youth unemployment than the other UK countries.
“Plaid Cymru is pleased to be playing its part in helping young people back into work with our scheme to create up to 10,000 apprenticeships giving them hope for the future.
“The Party of Wales also believes that we should have greater levels of local procurement from the Welsh public sector and investment in infrastructure spending on schools, hospitals and roads, both of which will create more jobs and better stimulate the Welsh economy.”