Stephen Beer > Blog > March 2012 > Support grows for jobs policy

Support grows for jobs policy

Stephen Timms promotes jobs guarantee in new pamphlet

The Smith Institute published on Friday by Stephen Timms MP, Job Guarantee: a right and responsibility to work, which promotes the idea of a jobs guarantee. It's not a new idea, as Stephen Timms notes, but he makes the case afresh that promoting employment is good for growth, for the Exchequer, and not least for the people who find work.

The pamphlet draws on a number of sources, including my Fabian pamphlet, The Credibility Deficit. My argument is that Labour's position should be that an important role of government to be an employer of last resort. While that is not yet our policy, this debate about a jobs guarantee is exactly the right one to have. It gets us beyond the current controversy about work experience and focuses on what's ultimately needed - to get people into work, which is an important reason for electing a government and a key reason for Labour's very existence and mission.

Stephen Beer, 10/03/2012

UK GDP growth fell 0.3% in last quarter

The Office for National Statistics lowers its estimate, from 0.2%.

Do we really know what's happening to our economy?

Data just gives us a guide and it can change - look what happened in the 1990s.