SOME people opt willingly for self-employed status because they believe in their ability to develop a business of their own.

The vast majority of those who do, however, are press-ganged into self-employment by the lack of job prospects and represent a particularly precarious section of the workforce.

The huge increase in the number of self-employed people in the very recent past — up to over 4.5 million — does not reveal an outburst of entrepreneurial zeal.

It indicates frustration at languishing on the dole looking for non-existent jobs while being berated by the government’s favourite “help the jobless back to work” private companies.

The stress of being told constantly that it’s your fault that you don’t have a job and that you must improve your qualifications, your CV, your work experience record and your personal attitude or face benefit sanctions can be dispiriting.

The pressure to walk away from it and work for yourself may appear liberating.

The government and its private-sector “advisers” flaunt the benefits of marketing yourself as a one-person company, doing odd jobs, cleaning, home hairdressing or whatever.

Not only can you qualify for a start-up grant, working tax credits, housing and council tax benefits but you don’t live in dread of being summoned to the office or find your benefits stopped for what appears to be a trivial reason.

Becoming self-employed seems a reasonable choice in this situation and it certainly makes sense for A4E and similar outfits that have grown fat from their role of massaging the jobless figures for the government.

You could say it’s not their fault. They are carrying out their activities in a way laid down by ministers.

The data put out by the Office for National Statistics, showing more people than ever in employment and ever-plummeting figures for people without a job and claiming benefit, will be taken as proof that government strategy and the efforts of the employment advisory companies are working.

But it’s not. It’s a charade designed to persuade people to disregard the evidence of their own lives and to swallow government propaganda.

Rapidly falling employment is invariably linked to higher pay as employers compete to attract staff.

There is no such boost in earnings, with growing numbers of jobs subject both to underemployment in terms of hours and to pay levels anchored around the minimum wage.

A million part-time workers would prefer a full-time job but can’t find one while a similar number are paid less than the living wage.

The fact that, as Labour MP Chris Leslie has revealed, the post-tax income of the top 1 per cent of the population has risen in a year from 8.2 per cent to 9.8 per cent while that of the bottom 90 per cent has slipped from 71.3 per cent to 70.4 per cent, points to an undeniable reality.

The so-called economic recovery is a myth unless you are one of the minted tiny elite.

What use is an economic “recovery,” no matter how weak or uncertain, if it has no real effect on jobs, the price of` essential goods and services, living standards and peace of mind for the vast majority of the population?

The cost-of-living crisis is far from over and it will need bold and imaginative measures, such as those outlined in the People’s Charter, to move from smoke and mirrors to substantive positive change.