Record employment in UK as Yorkshire jobless total falls

The region’s jobless total dropped by 12,000 in the latest quarter while employment rose by 34,000, data from the Office for National Statistics reveals.

Nationally, unemployment fell to just under 2.5m – the lowest since spring 2011 – and almost 3m adults were in a job, up by over half a million on the previous year.

The employment rate of 71 per cent is the highest since records began in 1971 and there was also a dip in the number of jobseeker’s allowance claimants.

Employment minister Mark Hoban said: “The UK employment rate is growing at almost double the rate of the US, and faster than any other G7 country.

“These are very positive figures showing employment rising for 15 months.”

Restaurant giant McDonald’s boosted the good news by serving up 2,500 new jobs – 140 of them in Yorkshire – but Lloyds Bank and airline Flybe put a dampener on the figures by announcing more than 1,200 job losses.

The 940 roles to be axed at Lloyds include 30 IT roles at its Copley Data Centre in Halifax and 40 at its office in Pudsey, Leeds.

And there was more bad news from Huddersfield engineering firm David Brown as it revealed consultation talks had begun over 75 potential redundancies.

Liam Byrne, shadow work and pensions secretary, said: “Today’s figures show no roaring recovery, they show very shaky foundations.”

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