House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Unemployment Levels

Monday 23 June 2025 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Key points

Labour inherited a labour market with nearly 1 million young people not in education or training
Employment has increased by 500,000 since the election
Conservative Members are criticized for not focusing on the employment recovery achievements

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Julia Lopez Con Hornchurch and Upminster

Economy Employment

Context

The MP references recent trends in unemployment, suggesting that government policies are not effectively addressing the issue.

Question

To cut spending and balance the books, Labour has to get people off welfare, but the Chancellor’s job tax and the Deputy Prime Minister’s unemployment Bill mean that there are fewer jobs for them to go to. Some 285 more of my constituents are out of work than last year, and since the Budget a quarter of a million jobs have vanished. A rise in public sector roles in the same period is probably masking a far deeper crisis going on in the private sector. There is no joined-up thinking. Has the Secretary of State warned her Cabinet colleagues that their policies are making her job impossible?

Answer from Paisley and Renfrewshire South

The Secretary of State inherited a labour market that was a mess under the Conservatives, with nearly 1 million young people not in education or training, and where the post-pandemic employment recovery has taken too long. Employment is up by 500,000 since the election. Economic inactivity—[Interruption.] Conservative Members might not like to hear it, but economic inactivity is down by 300,000 under this Government. No one on the Government Benches will take lectures on a good labour market from the Conservatives.

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Q2 Ashley Fox Con Bridgwater

Employment

Context

The MP questions the impact of government policies on employment, particularly in relation to job losses and the cost of hiring.

Question

Unemployment is now 115,000 higher than when Labour took office. The Chancellor’s new jobs tax and the Employment Rights Bill make hiring a new person more expensive. The family farms and family business taxes are reducing investment. Can the Minister therefore explain how he will reduce unemployment while the Chancellor is pursuing policies that increase it?

Answer from Paisley and Renfrewshire South

I do not want to try the patience of the House but, as I have said, employment is up by 500,000 under this Government. [Interruption.] Conservative Members do not like to talk about that. The hon. Gentleman mentions what British business wants—what British business wants is a Government who are actually fixing the public finances and the public services that mean that when a member of staff gets sick, they do not sit on a waiting list for years, as they did under the previous Government. The Conservatives like to attack the Employment Rights Bill, but stopping good employers being undercut by bad is the pro-business thing to do.