The United Kingdom’s unemployment rate rose for the first time in two years in the last quarter. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) there were 30.98 million people in work. This was 67,000 fewer than the 3 months to February 2015, the first quarterly fall since February to April 2013. However, compared to the same time period last year there were 265,000 more people in work.
“Today’s figures show the first quarterly fall in employment and the first rise in unemployment for over two years. So it’s possible that the rate of improvement in the labour market that we have seen over the last three years may have eased off, though it is much too early to be certain,” said Nick Palmer, a statistician at the ONS.
On examination of the data it showed the number of people in full-time employment rose by 30,000, while the total number of people working part time fell by 97,000.
The UK’s Work and Pensions Minister, Priti Patel, believes there are jobs to be found, in an interview with the BBC she said: “When you look at the strength of the UK labour market – through the reforms we brought in in the last parliament and now as well – we are seeing a lot of growth in the economy, and at the same time, wages are increasing, but vacancies are still at over 700,000, so there are jobs out there in the labour market and vacancies are there.”
Over the past five years, in comparison to the rest of Europe the United Kingdom unemployment rate has been substantially lower. It has been tracking the USA rate very closely. All rates across Europe, the USA and the UK have seen a small rise in the last recorded period.
Source: Labour Force Survey – Office for National Statistics
It is impossible to say whether or not this is a trend or a blip at this stage, the evidence and insights from experts are conflicting. In truth there is not enough data. However, this will be a cause for concern both in government and in the banking sector over the next few months.
