LIVERPOOL city leaders have approved a scheme which will see up to £31m allocated to Liverpool to create new jobs for unemployed young people struggling to find work because of the economic downturn.

The money is anticipated to create work for up to 4,800 people in the city, with at least 3,200 of those jobs going to those aged between 18 and 24.

The remainder will be open to older candidates.

But while the council said it is “determined to do all it can to ensure that employment is brought to the city, even in the most difficult circumstances”, opposition figures called for the scheme to be targeted at the poorest areas.

Under theFuture Jobs Fund scheme, which could generate up to £15m in wages for new-starters, the minimum term of employment is six months, leading to fears that some who secure work will end up back in the unemployment queues within a year.

But the report which went before the council’s executive board on Friday assures that “although some [jobs] will be temporary for the lifetime of the programme, it is expected that others will become sustainable as the effects of the recession ease”.

Deputy council leader and executive member for finance, Cllr Flo Clucas, admitted she was not generally a fan of short-term funding strategies, but that something needed to be done to encourage the growth of the job market.