Rt. Hon. John F. Spellar MP

Warley has 43^rd worst claimant rate of all 650 Parliamentary constituencies

Figures released by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show that unemployment has risen yet again. In Warley the claimant rate has continued to increase and now stands at 4,330, well above the UK national average. This represents 7.8% of the constituency population aged 16-64, which is almost double the UK average of 4.1%. This represents 11.2% of the economically active population aged 16-64, the 43^rd highest rate of all 650 Parliamentary constituencies.

The number of 16-24 year olds claiming Job Seeker’s Allowance (JSA) long term in Warley has risen by an astonishing 94.1% in the past year. Nationally it has more than doubled, and has increased by 107.2%.

The figures also show that there are only 285 unfilled job centre vacancies available, meaning there are more than 15 people chasing every vacancy in the constituency.

Commenting on the issue Warley MP, John Spellar, said:

“It is always worrying to see unemployment rising and this is no exception, today’s figures make for grim reading. This Tory-led government need to wake up and take urgent action.

“Despite growing concerns David Cameron and George Osborne have continued to cut too far and too fast they have managed to choke off any growth in the economy and unemployment is getting worse and worse,  reaching its highest levels since 1995. The level of youth unemployment is particularly concerning and our young people are being left to pay the price for this government’s failure”

“George Osborne claimed the success of his economic policy could be measured by the UK managing to keep hold of its AAA credit rating, which is now in question. Concentrating on that goal shows just how out of touch he is. The continuing rise in unemployment shows the real damage his economic policy is having on society.

“The government need to change course now. They claimed the private sector would pick up the slack of the cuts but public job cuts outweigh private jobs being created by 12 to 1. Labour would reintroduce the bankers’ bonus tax to create 100,000 jobs for young people.”