§ 18. Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many people in Wales who are unemployed (i) have been unemployed for a year or more and (ii) are aged 25 years and under.
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesIn January 1995, 39,700 persons in Wales had been on the claimant unemployment count for over one year. The number aged under 25 on the claimant count was 35,500.
§ Mr. Barry JonesWhat a great disgrace. Ministers should tackle the problem urgently. Is the Minister aware that, in my constituency, 1,500 unemployed people are either under the age of 25 or have been out of work for more than one year? What policy changes will he introduce? What hope will he give to those of our people who are unemployed?
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesI do not need to introduce any new policies because we already have the right policies, as has been shown as recently as in the Cambridge Econometric Theory survey of last week, which predicted that Wales would be the fastest-growing part of the United Kingdom economy during 1995. The hon. Gentleman ought to wake up to the real world.