Alarming rise in unemployment

HALTON has continued to feel the financial impact of coronavirus with the number of Universal Credit (UC) claimants rising by 11% in the space of a month and the out-of-work claimant count nearly doubling since the start of lockdown.

Figures published by the Department For Work And Pensions (DWP) showed there were 14,070 residents receiving UC in April this year.

This number rose to 15,643 during May – an increase of 1,573 claimants or 11.2%.

According to the Office For National Statistics, the quantity of out-of-work benefits claimants in Halton jumped from 3,180 in February to 6,075 in May.

Despite the grim figures, the monthly increase for UC claimants in Halton was less than the 17.6% extra UC cases experienced by the North West as a whole, and the extra 25.3% for the

North West.

Dave Brown, of Jobcentre Plus, said region had also fared better than London, where the number of UC claims had skyrocketed by 43%, the capital and the South East having bore the brunt of the initial outbreak.

He said some sectors are returning to work and there are lots of job vacancies in cleaning and care work, and work for drivers and in logistics, but the hospitality industry still has to wait until July 14 before it is likely to return.

Mims Davies, employment minister, said: “We’re doing everything we can to protect the economy and we will being a full post-coronavirus recovery package before Parliament in coming weeks, making sure there are options for young people.

“Before the pandemic, we had nearly halved youth unemployment and this will be critical as we emerge and rebuild.”