On the day unemployment rose to 4.5 per cent, Chancellor Alistair Darling has announced an extra £1.7bn of funding for Job Centre Plus and the New Deal.
There will also be additional support for people who have been out of work for 12 months through the Flexible New Deal.
And from January, everyone under the age of 25, who has been out of work for 12 months, will be offered a job or a place in training.
But Ball, whose firm provides online business insurance to SMEs, says the Budget failed to make it easier for entrepreneurs to bring people on board. “There are no measures to facilitate the unemployed being employed. There’s nothing in there to reduce red tape and bureaucracy associated with employing people.”
Coverzones employs 15 people and Ball says the company is in the fortunate position of looking for more staff.
The Budget also includes an increase in statutory redundancy pay increase from £350 to £380 a week.
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