Jobs boost for Britain as unemployment plunges to lowest level for six years
UNEMPLOYMENT plunged to its lowest level for more than six years as new figures today also showed pay rises continue to outstrip inflation.
The jobless total fell by 58,000 between September and November to 1.91 million - the lowest since autumn 2008, with a record 30 million people now in work.
The number of people claiming jobseeker's allowance fell in December by 29,600 to 867,000, the twenty-sixth month in a row the claimant count has fallen, the Office for National Statistics said.
Job vacancies have also reached a new record - up by 19,000 to 700,000 - suggesting unemployment will continue to fall.
Average earnings, meanwhile, have increased by 1.7 per cent in the year to November - up by 0.3 per cent on the previous month.
David Cameron hailed the fall in unemployment as a boost for families up and down the country.
"Our unemployment rate in Britain is now around half the level in the eurozone, and of course behind these figures lie real stories of people who have been able to find a job and to provide the security and stability for themselves and their families that I want for everyone in this country," he said.
"Nine out of 10 of the jobs that have been created in the last year are full-time jobs, and we're helping every family by cutting their taxes and making sure people can earn £10,000 before they pay any income tax at all."
Unemployment has fallen by 418,000 over the past year, although the latest quarterly reduction was the smallest since July to September 2013.
The jobless rate is now 5.8 per cent compared with 7.1 per cent a year ago. Despite the good news on unemployment, there was another increase in the number of people classed as economically inactive, up by 66,000 to more than nine million.
Our unemployment rate in Britain is now around half the level in the eurozone, and of course behind these figures lie real stories of people who have been able to find a job and to provide the security and stability for themselves and their families that
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said: "We have reached an important milestone in this country's jobs-led recovery - with unemployment falling below 6 per cent for the first time in six years. Welfare reform has played an instrumental part in this."
The Government said four out of five jobs created in the past year were full-time, proving that its policies were successfully getting people back to work.
Shadow work and pensions secretary Rachel Reeves said: "Today's fall in overall unemployment is welcome, but wages remain sluggish and working people are 1,600 a year worse off since 2010.
"Today's figures also show a worrying rise in youth unemployment. The Government should bring in a compulsory jobs guarantee to get young people into work."
David Kern, chief economist at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: "These figures again confirm that the UK labour market remains a key strength for the UK, but there are some areas of concern."
The TUC's head of economics, Nicola Smith, said: "After years of falling living standards, today's real earnings growth suggests that we may finally be starting to make up some of the lost ground.
"But at this rate of progress it will still be at least another parliament before wages are even back to where they were before the crisis.
"Households are still far worse off today than they were five years ago."
