Economy - Unemployment increasing
WORKERS, NOV 2006 ISSUE
The Office for National Statistics reports that unemployment is at its highest for seven years, up by 19.3 per cent this year to 1.7 million, 5.5 per cent of the population. The unemployment rate for 18- to 24-year-olds rose to 12.7 per cent
Unemployment in London is the worst in the country, at 8.2 per cent, its highest level in eight years. London also has the lowest employment rate, at 69.8 per cent, as against the national average of 74.6 per cent. Unemployment is now accelerating faster than at any time since March. Even the government's restrictive measure of unemployment, the numbers claiming jobless benefits, leapt more than 10,000 in September. The rise, said Reuters, confounded expectations.