Unemployment - Highest since 2000
WORKERS, OCT 2006 ISSUE
Unemployment rose by 93,000 between May and July to 1.7 million, its highest level since 2000, according to the 13 September report by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Yet Blair told the TUC on 12 September: "Tomorrow I think we will probably see – for the first time in some months – a fall again in unemployment, which is very, very welcome indeed."
In fact, he was wrong: unemployment had risen; only the number of people claiming unemployment benefits had fallen, by just 3,900.
National Statistician Karen Dunnell wrote to the Cabinet Secretary complaining about Blair leaking the figures: "The reported comments clearly contravened the National Statistics Code of Practice." This is the first time that the National Statistician has publicly stated that a minister has contravened the code.