The unemployment rate among young people is at its worst level for more than a decade with Labour accused of creating a ‘jobless generation’.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the unemployment rate for 16 to 24-year-olds surged to 16.1 per cent in the three months to December.

This is the highest level since early 2015 and, according to the Resolution Foundation think tank, is now higher than the EU average for the first time since records began in 2000.

The youth unemployment rate across Europe stood at 14.9 per cent in the final three months of last year.

But some parts of Britain are being hit worse by a joblessness crisis among young people than other areas, according to House of Commons Library data.

The top six parliamentary constituencies in the UK with the highest percentage of 18 to 24-year-olds claiming unemployment-related benefits are in Birmingham.

These are Birmingham Erdington (15.8 per cent), Birmingham Perry Barr (15.2 per cent), Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley (13.5 per cent), Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North (13.4 per cent), Birmingham Northfield (13.1 per cent), and Birmingham Yardley (13.1 per cent).

Bradford East (12.8 per cent), Bradford South (12.1 per cent) and Bradford West (11.8 per cent) are also in the top 10 constituencies with the highest percantage of young people claiming jobless benefits, along with East Thanet (12.5 per cent). 

Oxford West and Abingdon is the parliamentary constituency with the lowest percentage of 18 to 24-year-olds claiming unemployment benefits, with less than one per cent receiving out-of-work welfare.

Bath (1 per cent), Cambridge (1.2 per cent), Bristol Central (1.2 per cent), York Central (1.4 per cent), Edinburgh South (1.4 per cent), Exeter (1.5 per cent), North East Fife (1.7 per cent), Newcastle Upon Tyne North (1. 7 per cent), and Leeds Central and Headingley (1.7 per cent) also had the lowest rates of young people on unemployment-related benefits.

A weakened jobs market has seen sectors such as retail and hospitality – which traditionally employ younger workers – come under particular strain.

It comes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves hiked employers’ National Insurance contributions and pushed through above-inflation increases in the minimum wage, with some firms cutting jobs and slowing hiring in response.

Louise Murphy, senior economist at the Resolution Foundation, warned that almost one in six young people who wanted to work couldn’t find a job at the end of last year.

She warned that joblessness ‘risks climbing even further’ and said getting youth unemployment down in Britain – along with the share of young people who aren’t in education or training either – must be ‘a top priority for 2026’.

Senior Tory MP Helen Whately, the shadow work and pensions secretary, said: ‘An unprecedented series of monthly unemployment increases is the hallmark of this Labour Government.

‘The predictable result of bad decisions and economic incompetence. Young people are taking the hardest hit.

‘Entry-level roles are the first to disappear from Labour’s tax hikes. By making hiring more expensive and more risky, Labour have are ensuring school leavers and graduates never even get a foot in the door.

Her fellow Conservative frontbencher Andrew Griffith, the shadow business secretary, branded Labour a ‘zombie Government with no plan for growth’.

‘Labour’s Jobs Tax, economic uncertainty and their red tape Employment Rights Bill are holding back hiring, creating a jobless generation,’ he added.

Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said the latest ONS figures for overall employment showed there were 381,000 more people in work since the start of 2025. 

But he acknoledged there was ‘more to do to get people into jobs’, adding: ‘Our £1.5billion drive to tackle youth unemployment is a key priority and this month we announced that we’ll make it easier for young people to find and secure an apprenticeship, which comes on top of our investment to create 50,000 new apprenticeships.’