The Secretary General of the OECD Angel Gurría today warned parliamentarians that youth unemployment had reached alarming levels, surpassing 50 per cent in countries such as Greece and Spain. “The danger of a lost generation remains very real”, he told the Assembly.

Addressing PACE as part of its annual debate on the activities of the OECD, Mr Gurría also said that the economic crisis had exacerbated rising inequality and fuelled a social crisis, in turn leading to “plummeting” trust in government and institutions.

The Secretary General outlined some of the OECD’s efforts to tackle these problems, including its recent projects to reduce joblessness, jumpstart growth, boost trade flows, shift to a low-carbon economy and streamline tax policies.

He invited PACE’s input to shaping OECD policy, praising the Assembly as “in a unique position to measure the pulse of society” and able to act as a “voice to people who feel increasingly ‘lost’ in a fast-paced, globalised world”.

Parliamentarians from Chile, Japan, Mexico and the Republic of Korea – OECD member countries that are not part of the Council of Europe – also took part in the debate alongside PACE members.

The Parliamentary Assembly acts as the parliamentary forum for the OECD, holding annual debates on its work, in the light of Council of Europe values, and on the outlook for the global economy.