Tories hail record employment rate after steep fall in jobless numbers
EMPLOYMENT in Britain has reached a record level after the biggest fall in the jobless total for a decade.
More than 31.8 million adults across the UK are in a job, monthly official figures revealed.
The total was 300,000 higher than a year ago after a rise of 37,000 over the last three months.
Unemployment fell by 7,000 to just under 1.6 million over the same period.
The jobless total was the lowest since the start of 2006. It means just 4.8 per cent of the total UK workforce is unemployed, one of the lowest rates in Europe.
Growth
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the number of people claiming jobless benefits fell by 42,400 in January to 745,000, the biggest monthly fall since the autumn of 2013.
Average earnings increased by 2.6 per cent in the year to December, 0.2 per cent down on the previous month.
ONS senior statistician David Freeman said the labour market “appears to be edging towards full capacity”. He said: “Continued moderate growth in employment has led to a new high in the total employment rate, while the rate for women has reached 70 per cent for the first time on record.”
The number of people classed as economically inactive has fallen by 31,000 to 8.8 million, a rate of 21 per cent of the working population. The figure includes students, people looking after a relative, on long-term sick leave and those who have taken early retirement or given up seeking work. The number of people in full-time work has increased by 218,000 over the past year to 23 million, while part-time employment has risen by 84,000 to 8.5 million.
The UK’s employment rate of 74.6 per cent is the highest since records began in 1971.
Tory Work and Pensions Secretary Damian Green said: “With employment at its highest rate since records began, and unemployment at its lowest in over a decade, we remain in a position of strength.
“Our ongoing welfare reforms will continue to incentivise work and make sure the system is fair to all those who need it and those who pay for it. With youth unemployment down, women in work at record levels and the number of disabled people in work increasing too, we’re delivering on our pledge to build a country that works for everyone.”
Chloe Westley, spokeswoman for the Brexit-supporting pressure group Change Britain, said: “With record high employment and wages on the up, it is a double dose of good news for British workers. Despite the naysayers, our economy remains robust following the vote to leave the EU.
“A clean Brexit – where we can strike our own trade deals and create our own regulatory system – will only make our economy stronger, and help spread prosperity right across the UK.”
Suren Thiru, of the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “Overall, with employment levels rising and unemployment still falling, the latest figures confirm that the UK jobs market is in good health.”
Strong
Nigel Meager, director of the Institute for Employment Studies, said: “The latest employment statistics suggest that in the six months following the EU referendum there was no discernible impact on the labour market. The figures remain very strong.”
He also noted the rise of the so-called “gig economy” characterised by short-term contracts or freelance work. He said: “Selfemployment continues its remarkable growth, potentially fuelling the growing debate about the ‘gig economy’ and where the boundary between waged employment and self-employment should be set for legal and tax purposes.
“Interestingly, the most recent data show that nearly all the latest growth in self-employment has been among full-time workers, in contrast to recent years when much of it was part-time selfemployment.”
‘It’s good news for UK workers. Despite the naysayers, our economy remains robust following the vote to leave the EU’