MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

UK unemployment 7.8%, but jobseekers allowance claimants set a new record

Yvette Cooper, Work and Pensions Secretary expects jobs to pick up in the second half of the year

Unemployment in the UK fell at the end of last year but the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance has now reached a record high, new figures show. The number of Britons out of work fell to by 3,000 to 2.46 million in the three months to December, leaving the unemployment rate at 7.8%.

However, the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance jumped by 23,500 last month to 1.64 million to reach the highest level since Labour came to power in 1997. Long-term unemployment, covering those out of work for more than a year, increased by 37,000 in the quarter to December to 663,000, also the highest figure since 1997.

Yvette Cooper, the work and pensions Secretary, told Sky News that the government expected unemployment to keep rising until the summer, and then start falling.

She said that despite being a record high, the number of people signing on was actually half a million lower than the Government had predicted a year ago - and that it would be “completely barmy” to start slashing public spending.

“The idea we can't afford to help the unemployed is just ridiculous,” she said, accusing the opposition Tories of proposing cuts that would worsen the situation.
Theresa May, the shadow work and pensions secretary said the figures showed a “mixed picture”, and said: “What this tells us is that we mustn’t do anything to jeopardise recovery.”

“It's so important that we have a Government with a credible plan to deal with the deficit.” She went on: “The other figure that's significant is the 2.8 million people who are underemployed.

”That's people who have stayed in work but have seen a cut in their wages, or who want ot find full-time work but can't.”
A report released on Tuesday showed almost 10% of the British workforce is now classed as under-employed, compared with a rate of 6.6% in 2005, with most of the increase happening during the recession.

The latest figures also revealed that women bore the brunt of the latest job cuts, as 18,000 more women found themselves unemployed in the last three months of 2009.

There was better news for Britain's young people, many whom have found their career aspirations put on ice throughout the downturn. Unemployment among those aged 18-24 fell by 13,000 in the last three months of 2009 to 725,000.