Julian has welcomed the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) latest labour market figures, which show that the number of people in employment increased to a record high in April.
There are now four million more people in work across the UK than there were in 2010. The news comes despite the backdrop of a pandemic and large-scale warfare in Europe, provoked by Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.
The ONS estimate that the UK’s employment rate has now hit 76 per cent, with increases in both the number of employees and self-employed workers. By contrast, the economic inactivity rate – covering those who are not working but who do not qualify as unemployed – decreased by 0.4 per cent over the first quarter of 2023.
This news comes as the number of people claiming benefits in Skipton and Ripon is confirmed to be less than half the national average. The 945 claimants make up just 1.7 per cent of the population aged 16-64, compared with the UK claimant rate of 3.7 per cent. Similarly, the 150 claimants aged 18-24 make up 2.7 per cent of all 18–24-year-olds, compared to 4.7 per cent nationally.
