Drop in rate of unemployment in North Yorkshire (From Gazette & Herald)

Drop in rate of unemployment in North Yorkshire

9:35am Thursday 18th October 2012 in News By Mike Laycock, Chief reporter

UNEMPLOYMENT in York has fallen to its lowest level in almost four years. Latest figures show the number of people claiming JobSeekers Allowance fell in the York council area by almost 200 between August and September to 3,057 – or 2.2 per cent of those eligible to claim.

The last time the figure was this low was in January 2009, when there were 3,032 claimants, or 2.2 per cent of those eligible.

York council leader James Alexander said: “This is really positive news and a sign that York is heading in the right direction, and in a meaningful way.”

He said he was particularly pleased to see a drop in youth unemployment, given that employment opportunities were more difficult to come by for those with less experience.

York Central MP Hugh Bayley said the figures showed York was experiencing an economic recovery, despite continuing problems elsewhere in the country, but the Government still needed to fund improvements to roads and infrastructure to ensure the recovery could continue.

The figures also revealed improvements in other parts of North and East Yorkshire. In the North Yorkshire County Council area, the number of claimants fell by 215 to 2.3 per cent of those eligible. This was the lowest since June last year, when there were 8,649 claimants.

In the Selby district, the number of claimants fell by 52 to 1,424, or 2.7 per cent of those eligible, the lowest figure since November 2010, when there were 1,410 claimants.

Nigel Adams, MP for Selby and Ainsty, said: “I welcome yet another fall in local unemployment which is very good news for the district. I’m also hopeful that my recent Jobs fair will have a further positive impact on the jobless figures in the months ahead.”

In Ryedale, the number of claimants fell by 51 to 615, or 1.9 per cent of those eligible, but the figure was slightly lower there in July, when there were 610 claimants.

In the East Riding of Yorkshire Council area, the numnber fell by 96 to 6,595, or 3.1 per cent of those eligible, the lowest since August last year.