Youth unemployment reaches 20-year peak

Yesterday's figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal an unemployment 'crisis' for over one million 16-25 year olds.

The level of youth unemployment broke the one million barrier for the first time in 20 years, according to dailymail.co.uk, and currently stands at 1.02 million young people out of work. Experts are warning that a generation of young people are at risk of debt and depression.

The figures show that in the third quarter of this year alone, unemployment rose by 197,000. Two-thirds of those affected were in the 16-25 year age category.

There is some debate about the unemployment figures. The Employment Minister Chris Grayling believes the ONS should not include 286,000 full-time students who can't find part-time work in the figures. The Government has its own measure of youth unemployment called NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) which does not refer to students as 'unemployed'.

The chief executive of the young people's charity The Prince’s Trust, Martina Milburn, highlighted the emotional distress that can be caused by unemployment. She described it as a 'mental health hazard'.

A spokesperson for debt management company Gregory Pennington commented: "Unemployed people are at greater risk of financial hardship and debt. Similarly, anyone with existing debts may begin to have problems if they lose their job. There are still ways to get out of debt while you're unemployed, so it's worth speaking to an expert as soon as you can."