Unemployment takes a fall
Unemployment was cut by 7,000, latest official figures show. Unemployment in the UK in the three-month period September to November 2019 fell by 7,000 to 1,306,000 from 1,314,000 in the previous three-month period.
The fall in numbers, due to a cut in jobless women, was also enough to reduce the unemployment rate to 3.8% from 3.9%.
The number of unemployed women fell by 9,000 to 577,000 and their unemployment rate was cut to 3.6% from 3.7%. The number of unemployed men increased by 2,000 to 729,000, but their 4.0% rate was unchanged.
On a country-wide basis, unemployment increased in England by 22,000, but was down in Wales by 18,000, by 7,000 in Scotland and 5,000 in Northern Ireland.
The other main official unemployment measure — the claimant count — only includes claimants receiving Jobseeker’s Allowance and those on Universal Credit. In December 2019, this count saw unemployment at 1.24 million — a 14,900 increase on the previous month’s total of 1.23 million.
This increase pushed the joblessness rate up to 3.5% from 3.4%.
Male claimants increased by 8,600 to 725,100 but their joblessness rate was unchanged at 3.8%. The number of female claimants increased by 6,200 to 516,100 but their joblessness rate was steady at 3.0%.