THE number of young people facing long-term unemployment has more than doubled over the past three years, a TUC report has found.

A fifth of unemployed people aged 18 to 24 were out of work for over 12 months, according to data published on Saturday as 200 delegates met for the TUC Young Workers Conference.

TUC assistant general secretary Kate Bell said that “trade union answers” were needed to counter high youth unemployment. 

In the face of a potential Reform government by the next parliament, she called for “a real jobs guarantee, more apprenticeships and a fair chance for all.”

She said this was the only way to disarm “those claiming that the only way to help young people back into work is to slash their pay and their rights.”

Ms Bell said: “Trade unions are fighting every day for more jobs for the young people left behind by the pandemic and an education system and workplaces that have let them down.”