Yorkshire’s jobless tally hits five-year low

The jobless rate dropped to 6.6 per cent in the three months to April, a level it has not equalled since January 2009. In Yorkshire and The Humber it now stands at 228,000, a rate of 8.2 per cent, the second highest in the country.

Chancellor George Osborne hailed the progress as an important step towards the goal of full employment, while Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander said: “Britain is bouncing back.”

But Labour and the unions pointed to the continuing “cost-of-living crisis”, as the figures also showed that pay growth slumped to just 0.7%, sharply down from 1.7% the month before and well below inflation, running at 1.8%.

Economists suggested the squeeze, which means real-terms pay packets are still falling, would offset pressure on the Bank of England to hike interest rates, which might have been caused by the better headline jobs picture.

Employment rose by a record 345,000 in the period to 30.54 million, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. It was the steepest rise since records began in 1971.

It means 780,000 jobs have been added since a year earlier, the biggest annual rise since 1989. Unemployment fell by 161,000 to 2.16 million in the three months. Long-term and youth joblessness were also down.

Employment minister Esther McVey said: “As we build a stronger economy, businesses up and down the country are feeling increasingly confident about creating jobs, meaning many thousands more people are in work every day.”

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: “This coalition Government is strengthening the foundations on which our economy is built, creating the conditions for greater confidence, more jobs and further growth.”