We need young people to do well. All our futures depend on their skills, knowledge, energy and – let’s face it – earning power. In a world where competition from China and other emerging economies will only become more intense, we need British young people to do better than ever.

It is therefore grim to note that the current recession is hitting young people especially hard.

It’s not surprising, given the current meltdown in the job market, that more and more savvy school leavers are looking for university places; but there’s a problem. The latest figures suggest that this autumn there will be 3,000 extra university places available for 65,000 extra would-be students. That’s a recipe for disappointment on a grand scale.

Worse still are the problems facing graduates leaving university who are finding it very hard, if not impossible, to get work. This is not only disappointing but seriously wasteful. Official figures tell us that of last year’s crop of graduates, over 16,000 found no job despite their qualifications. I fear that there will be many more this year.

To make matters worse, most graduates are laden with thousands of pounds of debt, including Student Loans, which they had expected to begin paying off when they started work. I recently heard of one local case where a graduate with excellent qualifications, forced to take a poorly paid job, saw most of her wages go towards paying the interest on her Student Loan. There will be many more cases like that.

And if graduates are taking unskilled jobs, what are the prospects for those who opted not to go to university? There’s more trouble brewing here. The number of 16 to 18 year olds joining apprenticeship schemes has fallen by 8% over the past year. There are more and more young people with nothing useful to do once they have finished their education.

I know from my case-work that there are plenty of older people in East Surrey who face real challenges because of the dire state of the economy. The consequences of sudden unemployment are not just economic but psychological; and the prospect of losing family homes through re-possession is traumatic. People who have worked hard all their lives too often find that the help they thought would be there in times of need just isn’t. That needs to be put right.

However, the serious difficulties being faced by young people leaving school or university must not be overlooked. If your family has been affected by these issues, I would be very pleased to hear from you and you can contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it