Unemployment rises again as ‘experts’ admit the economy is out of control

Let’s clarify the headline by explaining that the UK isn’t out of control like a car with no brakes; there simply isn’t any attempt to point it in the right direction.

Instead, so-called ‘experts’ are reduced to saying what they think the economy seems to be doing, after unemployment unexpectedly increased for the second month running.

Here’s John Hawksworth, chief economist for tax-dodge gurus PriceWaterhouseCooper: “Overall the picture is one of a continuing economic recovery, led by private sector services. But the balance of growth between jobs and productivity seems to be shifting, which could be good news if it makes the upturn more sustainable.” [Italics mine]

Seems to be? Could be? He doesn’t know why. Nobody knows why.

This is what happens when you let laissez-faire free-market Tories take over your economy – they abdicate all responsibility and let anything happen. They are utterly irresponsible.

According to The Guardian:

Official data showed that the number of people in work was 63,000 lower in the three months to June than in the previous quarter, while the number unemployed rose by 25,000.

The Torygraph told us:

“The jobs recovery in the UK looks to have paused somewhat in the past few months, but we remain optimistic that is a temporary blip in June,” said Jeremy Cook at World First

He couldn’t be sure because nobody is trying to exert any influence on the economy at all.

Over at the BBC, we were told that wages were continuing to rise:

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures also indicated that earnings growth is slowing.

Earnings including bonuses rose 2.4% from a year ago, compared with 3.2% growth in the March to May period.

Excluding bonuses, pay was up 2.8% in the April to June period, unchanged from the previous figure.

Astonishingly, according to The Independent, the DWP has been trying to blame the Labour Party and the SNP – neither of which are in government, and therefore cannot influence the behaviour of the economy – for the jobs downturn.

“DWP minister Justin Tomlinson took to Sky News to downplay the rise and argued that the bad economic news was the fault of the opposition parties and not the Government.

“’What we are seeing is that during that election period – and I know as a former businessperson myself – it’s not unreasonable when you’ve got an SNP-Labour anti-business agenda ahead in the polls that businesses pause,’ he said.”

What utter hogwash. It’s the lack of direction from the Conservative Government that is hindering the economy – as it has been ever since David Cameron took over as Prime Minister in 2010.

This is a view endorsed by one commenter in The Independent. Chris Jones, Chief Executive of the City & Guilds Group, which helps employees and employers with skills, argued that better policies were needed.

“The steady stream of good news has now run dry as unemployment has risen for the second consecutive month. With many predicting last month’s rise to be a blip, it’s concerning that a trend is developing,” he said.

“But 16 per cent of young people are still unemployed. Clearly we need to do a lot more to help set young people on the path to success.

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16 Comments

  1. Neilth August 12, 2015 at 11:54 am - Reply

    Of course the Tories want to blame everyone else when we all know it’s the pixies behind the stove that cause all the trouble.
    The government can say what they want knowing that the opposition are still disorganised and will let them establish their lies in the National consciousness just as we did in 2010

  2. Neo-Pelagius August 12, 2015 at 11:58 am - Reply

    I thought seasonal employment usually made unemployment fall in the summer months?

    • fathomie August 12, 2015 at 4:31 pm - Reply

      Exactly. ‘But’ employment figures are ‘seasonally adjusted’ to compensate for that. Which means, in English, unemployment is even higher than the figure masseurs over at the ONS are letting on.

  3. hstorm August 12, 2015 at 11:58 am - Reply

    “Chris Jones… argued that better policies were needed.”

    Correction: Policies are needed. Any at all. There are none whatsoever at the moment.

    Laissez-faire is the argument that because Governments can make mistakes when running the economy, it is better to leave the economy to run itself. This is a little like saying that some drivers can be dangerous, therefore it’s best just to let the car off its brakes and let it freewheel away without anyone touching the steering wheel.

    • Mike Sivier August 12, 2015 at 1:48 pm - Reply

      Yup. You know there’ll be a crash somewhere along the road.

      • hstorm August 12, 2015 at 5:19 pm - Reply

        Especially on a Conservative economic road.

  4. Michael Broadhurst August 12, 2015 at 12:10 pm - Reply

    3 months in after the election all the tory plans are going pear shaped.
    bet all the waverers who voted tory because they couldn’t trust Labour with the
    economy are now saying” well we didn’t vote tory”,
    what idiots !!

  5. NMac August 12, 2015 at 12:14 pm - Reply

    As long as Cameron/Osborne and cronies get their tax cuts, absolutely nothing else matters to them.

  6. david August 12, 2015 at 1:54 pm - Reply

    if we ignore the pay of the top 10% (where most of the bonuses probably lie, I’m sure the pay increase % will be a lot different

  7. Terry Hackman August 12, 2015 at 2:32 pm - Reply

    Modern economics has become increasingly irrelevant to the understanding of the real world. A link attached [ hope it works ]
    https://rwer.wordpress.com/2015/08/11/economics-departments-breeding-generation-after-generation-of-idiot-savants/

  8. Daniel Margrain August 12, 2015 at 2:45 pm - Reply

    Even top economists like Stiglitz and Krugman as well as venture capitalists like Nick Hanauer and Larry Fink, recognise we need a change of course akin to a Keynesian approach to the economy. People like this don’t argue for this because they are in any way altruistic, but rather because they understand that its good for business and will save capitalism from itself. I expanded on this in the following blogs for those interested:

    http://danielmargrain.com/2015/07/14/dung-of-the-devil-share-buy-backs/

    http://danielmargrain.com/2015/07/15/the-marxist-venture-capitalists-vision-to-save-the-world/

    • fathomie August 12, 2015 at 4:36 pm - Reply

      Unfortunately, as with Education, Health, Welfare, energy etc the only external voices the Tories listen to is those queuing up to buy up our national assets. As such, the idea of an intervention economy is abhorrent to them. Govt driving the economy, and investing in quality public services for the benefit of the entire country? Are you mad! ;)

  9. Ian August 12, 2015 at 7:11 pm - Reply

    Maybe there are fewer people on workfare or being sanctioned at the moment? They were removed from the unemployment figures, after all.

    Take this into account and the fact that the DWP has redefined child poverty so barely anyone is now poor, you could almost be forgiven that the government are bunch of lying, clueless, inbred, dimwitted, posh-boy dilettantes with as much knowledge of economics as my cat, Bonky (who isn’t too bright, poor lass).

    Not that I’d condone such a thing. Much.

    • Mike Sivier August 12, 2015 at 11:22 pm - Reply

      Your cat’s called Bonky?
      I can’t condone that either!

      • Ian August 13, 2015 at 12:52 am - Reply

        It’s better than Tiddles :-)

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