[Parmy]

The UK's unemployment rate has unexpectedly climbed to 5.2% in the three months to December, marking a near five-year high, according to official figures from the Office for National Statistics. The surge is driven by a sharp rise in youth unemployment, which hit 16.1% for 16 to 24-year-olds – the worst level in over a decade and surpassing the EU average for the first time since records began in 2000.

The overall jobless rate rose from 5.1% in the three months to November, reaching its highest point since January 2021 and the worst outside the pandemic era since autumn 2015. Most economists had expected the rate to hold steady at 5.1%. The ONS also reported that regular wage growth fell to 4.2%, down from a revised 4.4%, while the number of workers on payrolls dropped by 6,000 and redundancies increased by 11,000 to 145,000 in the final quarter of 2025.

Youth unemployment has become a particular concern, with nearly one in six young people unable to find work. Louise Murphy, senior economist at the Resolution Foundation, warned: «At the end of last year almost one-in-six young people who wanted to work couldn't find a job. Unemployment risks climbing even further in 2026.» She called for urgent action: «We must urgently turn our attention to the UK's unemployment problems.»

Political blame game erupts

The figures have sparked sharp political debate. Shadow work and pensions secretary Helen Whately blamed the Labour Government's policies, calling the rise «the predictable result of bad decisions and economic incompetence.» She argued that «Young people are taking the hardest hit» and warned: «Entry-level roles are the first to disappear from Labour's tax hikes.»

Whately added: «By making hiring more expensive and more risky, Labour are ensuring school leavers and graduates never even get a foot in the door.» The criticism refers to the government's increased national insurance contributions and above-inflation minimum wage hikes, which some companies cite for cutting jobs and slowing hiring.

[Livia]

Blame Rachel Reeves for tinkering with the minimum wage. Employers can't afford to hire people.