Unemployed

So I graduated in July 2023...I have worked at a petrol station from October-December. I am now unemployed again so what do I say when I eventually get a job interview and they ask me why I was unemployed? Can I just say that I wasn't getting anything and then I went to work for my cousin's petrol station for 3 months? This was the actual case? Also can I apply for 2024 graduate schemes?

According to your research on vacancies published by companies recruiting for those graduating in 2024, what is the eligibility that they publish? You must have looked at some of the schemes that are open now for the career you are interested in or related to the subject of your degree.
I graduated some years ago so things may have changed. Then they started recruiting at the end of the penultimate year with the aim of making offers by the spring/summer of the final year with start dates in the summer/autumn. They were not interested in anyone who had graduated the previous year.
Perhaps things have changed since then. There were only crumbs left after finals had taken place and they shunned anyone who graduated the previous year. Hopefully someone will let you know.
What type of graduate scheme/job are you interested in?

Yes you are definitely eligible for 2024 graduate schemes. I've also heard that grad schemes will generally accept applications from anyone who's graduated up to the previous 2-3 years, so if unsuccessful you can even try again next year and the year after that. Best time to look at grad schemes is September-December time though, as a lot of them will have already filled all their spaces by this point.
My personal experience of job interviews is that I was never really asked in detail what I'd been doing since graduating. I think most employers understand that the job market is really difficult for new graduates at the moment. If you are asked, and it'll probably just be small talk rather than an actual interview question, try and dress up your answer a bit so that it'll give the interviewer a good impression (maybe something like 'I've been job searching, in the meantime i've been doing online courses including in [skill the employer wants], and working on [productive sounding hobby], and also worked in a petrol station').

So I graduated in July 2023...I have worked at a petrol station from October-December. I am now unemployed again so what do I say when I eventually get a job interview and they ask me why I was unemployed? Can I just say that I wasn't getting anything and then I went to work for my cousin's petrol station for 3 months? This was the actual case? Also can I apply for 2024 graduate schemes?

I'm on the same boat but working part-time at a restaurant rn. 2024 grad schemes are definitely accepting and even most of the 2025 ones since they accept people who graduated in the previous 2 years. I've applied for most of the 2024 ones and hoping to get some good news or I'll have to apply for the 2025 ones .