Struggle of young Rochdale dad, Liam Clarke, casts doubt over PM’s plan for North West

Prime Minister David Cameron appeared on ITV’s Granada News last week (January 8) to discuss economic growth in the North West – but his policies were questioned after Liam Clarke from Rochdale revealed the difficulties people across the region face when finding and keeping work.

Mr Cameron discussed the government’s plan to maintain the UK economy following the recession, drawing on the importance of nationwide recovery that would see people outside the capital feel positive change.

The Prime Minister added that since his government took power in 2010 close to 100,000 jobs have been created in the North West thanks to the Tories’ ‘long term economic plan’.

This point was countered when interviews with working people from across the region revealed that zero hours contracts and redundancies mean that for many employment is difficult to maintain.

One of those people was Liam Clarke, from Rochdale, who spoke about a lack of job security and the difficulty of supporting a family without consistent work.

Liam said: “It’s like an endless cycle. I was doing the same thing over and over – all minimum wage, zero contract hours. I’ve never had a safety net.

“I’ve got to really support my family. I thought, ‘I need to do something to better myself.’”
Liam started a college course to help his situation and spends most of his day, from 10am until 4pm, in college, but has to then work from 6pm until 11pm to ensure his has enough money to get by.

And Liam was not alone in his struggle with employment. A single mother of two from Bolton told how she had been made redundant four times and much of the work that she came across offered few hours.

Mr Cameron responded by saying job security was a priority for his government. “Figures show that in the last year nine out of 10 jobs have actually been full time jobs,” he said. “We do need to act to help people have greater security.”