'Hidden' unemployment shows why we need levelling up - The Yorkshire Post says

If Britain is to recover from a recession then all parts of the country need to be firing on all cylinders.

And it is clear from the recent study by the Centre for Cities that the region’s true economic potential is not being utilised.

Its Cities Outlook report shows that Yorkshire’s unemployment rate should be three times higher than figures suggest because the official rate only includes those who are actively looking for jobs and does not measure people who are neither in work nor looking for a job due to circumstances outside of their control.

As a result Yorkshire’s low unemployment rate does not include nearly 300,000 people who are involuntarily out of work but classed as economically inactive. Unemployment rises from 4.1 per cent to 13.8 per cent, when this group is factored in.

Hull and Barnsley are the most affected with nearly one in five people falling into this ‘hidden’ unemployment category.

The report once again highlights a North-South divide. Cities in the North are more likely to face a job shortage. There is also a clear North-South divide in the number of people out of work due to long-term sickness.

It is further evidence of the need to level up. Unfortunately, the Government’s failure to deliver has left regions like Yorkshire struggling economically.

What this region needs isn’t piecemeal handouts for which they have to fight other towns and cities across the country. Instead, the Government needs to deliver a transformative economic agenda. One that puts people at the heart of the solution.

We need investment in skills and properly funded public services that give confidence to the private sector - encouraging them to invest and create jobs.