We hear today that unemployment in Birmingham has risen to over 45000, up roughly 50%in a year.This comes as no surprise but is still a shocking figure. So much for this country being best placed to survive the recession.
It is a sign of the bad luck surrounding this government that they have ended Neighbourhood Renewal fund and replaced it with Working Neighbourhood Fund just as the economy went into a nosedive.The idea was to try to get people off long term unemployment, sorry, worklessness, just at a time when thousands of people with qualifications and experience were being thrown onto the job market. Perhaps if this had been tried much earlier we would have had more local people working instead of so many jobs going to foreign workers. Remember British jobs for British workers?
The saga of Longbridge and Bournville College goes on. We can only hope that our quiescent local mp pulls his finger out and shakes Sion Simon MP, the minister for Universities and Skills no less, until the money for the college appears. We suspect that the money will be found but they will make a big production of it and our sensitive local mp will try to take all the credit for himself.
Our apologies for the break in blogging but normal service will now be resumed.
