More than a thousand youth march for jobs

(Update 3)

Youth Fight for Jobs led more than thousand young marchers through London, as reported on BBC London news tonight, stopping to present a petition to Downing Street.

The BBC website report, headed ‘Young protesters march for jobs’ pointed out that youth unemployment has risen by 15,000 to 943,000, and stated:

“Students, union activists and campaigners condemned the government for “failing our futures”.

Organiser Sean Figg said: “Young people are more of an investment than the banks, yet the government has not seen things that way.”

Luke Ivory, who has been unemployed in Dundee for the past six months, said: “Where I’m from graduates feel lucky to flip burgers.”

The 26-year-old added: “The government has done absolutely nothing to help so this generation must take things into our own hands.”

The BBC report continued:

‘Mr Figg, spokesman for organisers Youth Fight for Jobs, said: “There’s all sorts of socially useful work that could be created and that’s why we are here today.

“Is it going to take an entire generation before ministers take notice?” ‘

After handing in the petition, Sean Figg told the march, “they told me no one was home”. That summed up the situation as far as young people were concerned, he said.

The Socialist Party speaker Hannah Sell demanded sharing out the available work without loss of pay.

More reports to follow.

* Socialist Party editorial: ‘How could full youth employment be achieved?‘

* Socialist Party Leading article: ‘We wont pay for the crisis’ by Hannah Sell

Youth Fight For Jobs website report: Fight for your future