Unemployment falls but Yorkshire cities among UK’s hardest hit

BRITAIN’S JOBLESS rate has fallen for the first time since the pandemic struck, despite the latest lockdown shutting large parts of the economy, according to official figures.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the rate of unemployment edged back to five per cent between November and January, down from 5.1 per cent in the previous three months.

Economists had expected the rate to rise to 5.2 per cent.

The data also showed the number of workers on UK payrolls increased for the third month in a row, up 68,000 in February, in what experts said was a further sign that the jobs market was stabilising. But payroll worker numbers have now fallen by 693,000 since February 2020 after a devastating year, with more job losses to come after furlough ends.

Hull and Bradford both feature in Centre for Cities’ list of the worst areas for unemployment, at third and fourth in the country respectively. More than half of the fall nationally – 368,000 jobs – were lost in the hospitality sector as lockdowns and restrictions hammered the industry, according to the figures.

The ONS added that 123,000 payroll jobs were also lost in the hard-hit retail sector, while more than 60 per cent of the total fall over the past year was for those aged under 25 in a sign of the toll taken by the crisis on young workers.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “Coronavirus has caused one of the largest labour market shocks this country has ever faced, which is why protecting, supporting and creating jobs has been my focus throughout this crisis.

“We have taken decisive action with a £352bn package of support.”

Overall, unemployment stood at 1.7 million between November and January, up 11,000 over the quarter and 360,000 year-onyear, the ONS said.