The war on jobs for the young has commenced.

What exactly is the Government doing to combat the levels of youth unemployment? So far, it seems, not much. One of the first casualties of the coalition’s spending cuts was The Future Jobs Fund – a scheme that aimed to create 111,000 new jobs, targeted at those aged 18-24, by 2011. This does not seem to be the actions of a government that is committed to helping the growing multitudes of jobless graduates.

Chris Grayling, Minister of State for the Department of Work and Pensions, has come up with a (rather lacklustre) replacement. – the single Welfare-to-Work programme. The specific criteria of this scheme is more than a little vague and seems to focus on reducing the amount of people eligible to claim benefits, rather than increasing the number of entry jobs in the UK. I might also add that the scheme will not be implemented until 2011. What exactly, Mr Grayling, is the Jobless Graduate expected to do until then – suffer in silence?

It is extremely unsettling that the Government sees the issue of youth unemployment of such little importance that it can be overlooked for several months, with any methods already put in place to tackle the situation scrapped at the first opportunity.  The Jobless Graduate urges you to contact your local MP about this issue – badger, pester and even demand that something must be done to provide the country’s youth with more jobs.

Join La Résistance...

The Jobless Graduate strongly supports a campaign by Intern Aware to ensure that all young people undertaking internships are paid the minimum wage. It is a travesty that in the 21st century the youth of this country are still being subjected to a form of slave labour. If a job is done, a wage must be paid.

Show your support by simply adding your name to the online petition at the Intern Aware website, joining the fight to make the British Government (where, incidentally, MPs are still advertising unpaid internships) take action.

If you want to find out more, visit the campaign Facebook Group and join the 3,000 young people that have already signed up.

Hall of Fame #1: David Rowe

David Rowe has gone down in the history of jobless graduate legends. Serving as an inspiration to us all, David donned a sandwich-board (yes a sandwich-board) in a defiant and gutsy attempt to break into the job market. Roaming the streets of London's business district, David became a human advert and a symbol of the plight of the modern graduate. 

When interviewed, the University of Kent graduate said:

'The first 20 paces are the hardest, you feel very conspicuous, but you just steel yourself to get on with it. I have debts of about £20,000, and that's not excessive compared with how much some students owe when they graduate.'

David's determination paid off; within hours he had received a job offer, and in the five days he sported his sandwich-board he received 250 inquiries from prospective employers. He later accepted a job as a junior sales-coordinator at Fleet Street's JCDecaux. 

David, the Jobless Graduate salutes you.

Hall of Shame #1: David Willetts

Dastardly David Willetts, Minister of State for Universities, has announced that ''tuition fees are a burden on the tax-payer''. The cheek! First we get coerced into borrowing thousands of pounds each year to pay the fees and then we get blamed for the state of the economy. An economy, I might add, that is failing the jobless graduate with its catastrophic lack of jobs.

A glance at a yearly bill from the Student Loans Company (if you dare) will reveal that the average monthly interest on the loan is £30. What about the burden on the graduate who 'invested' in a degree only to be saddled with nothing but a financial black hole and a regular stool at the Job Centre? I find Mr Willetts incredibly insulting, especially in the light of recent spending cuts by his government that could result in tuition fees rising to mortgage-style amounts.

Let's face the music and...?

Yes, I have joined the ranks of the unemployed. Yes, I (as so many of us did) bought into the promise that a good degree would translate into a decent job and cold hard cash. How wrong I was. One year ago my hopes were as high as the mortar board flung from my newly graduated head, but as Newton wisely said: What goes up must come down (or words to that effect). Three unpaid internships, bucket loads of volunteer work and a place in the dole queue later, oh how the mighty have fallen.

In a bid to find a foolproof way of landing a job and getting a foot on the first rung of the career ladder, this blog will scour the internet and media for all things jobless. From tips and advice, horror stories, campaigns and (oh-so-important) jobless distractions. This site will provide a platform for the voice of all jobless graduates out there - a place to ask questions, share advice and rally together in all our unemployed glory.

Here's to finding a job - Good Luck Comrades.