Employment stats make happy reading

The Office for National Statistics published its recent round of Labour Market Statistics yesterday.

Employment in the North East stands at 1.2million (72.7 per cent), which represents an increase of 10,000 over the quarter and 25,000 over the year. This compares to a rate of 75 per cent nationally.

Unemployment in the region stands at 71,000 (5.5 per cent), which is a fall of 6,000 over the quarter and 8,000 over the year. This compares to a rate of 4.3 per cent nationally.

The claimant count is 53,600 (4.3 per cent) in the North East. The national claimant count rate is 2.3 per cent.

Reflecting on the figures, Paul Carbert, policy adviser for the North East England Chamber of Commerce, said: “These statistics continue the recent positive trend for the North East.

“Employment levels and the employment rate are at record highs and the number of part-time workers who cannot find a full-time job has fallen over the past year. Unemployment in the North East is now at the lowest rate for a decade.

“However, the gap between our region and London and the South East remains too large. We have called on the Government to address this issue by using the upcoming Budget to correct the historic under-investment in the North East’s transport infrastructure, provide guarantees over future regional business finance once Britain leaves the EU and to ensure that companies have the support they need to access new international markets.”

Nationally, the number of people in employment has increased by more than three million since 2010.