Worklessness is one of the government's challenges and it is at a 13-year high. But how can it be fixed?

If we are to achieve the economic growth the government promises we simply must be able to persuade more people both to work and get back to work.

According to the latest figures from The Office for National Statistics, a total of 9.4 million people fall into this category and are said to be "economically inactive".

These figures are up by 1 million people since the start of Covid and there are now approximately 2.83 million on long-term sick.

The really worrying factor for business and the government's pledge on growth is that our economy is deprived of the tax due to people not working on a long-term basis.

Personally, I support the idea from the former health minister Alan Milburn that it should be an obligation for those receiving out-of-work benefits to engage in finding a job.

I was recently involved with Gloucestershire County Council's employment team in developing a 50/50 project to encourage over-50s to return to work.

At the last count, the team had 50 companies actively participating in it. This is just the type of realistic initiative that is vital if we are to rescue people from worklessness, and at the same time encourage businesses to invest in employing them.

In turn, that will encourage economic growth, and in many cases help people who, for one reason or another, have given up on work.

I hope that Mr Milburn's year-long project - said to be the biggest in-depth study into economic inactivity in recent times - will come up with some realistic answers.

At the same time, I believe that the skills gap is a major challenge for our local economy with many skilled workers - particularly in the engineering sector - deciding to take early retirement after Covid.

That's why the Local Skills Improvement Plans or LSIPs, which Business West is developing in our region for government, are so important.

These LSIPs are designed to ascertain what skills companies need for the jobs they need to grow.

Getting these economically inactive people back into work is a key step in the journey to growth for our businesses.