[Omah]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15747103

Unemployment is at its highest level for 17 years, according to the Office for National Statistics

UK unemployment rose by 129,000 in the three months to September to 2.62 million, as youth unemployment also rose above a million.

The jobless total for 16 to 24-year-olds hit a record high of 1.02 million in the quarter.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the unemployment rate increased to 8.3%.

The number of people out of work and claiming Jobseeker's Allowance rose by 5,300 to 1.6 million in October.

The unemployment rate of 8.3% is the highest since 1996 and the total number of unemployed people the highest since 1994.

The number of unemployed people rose in every part of the UK, except for the East Midlands, where it remained unchanged, and the North West and Northern Ireland, where the number of unemployed fell.

The unemployment rate was highest in the North East, at 11.6%.

The number of people in work was also down 197,000 on the quarter.

Unions, however, blamed the government for the rise.

"The number of young people out of work is far higher in the UK than in other parts of Europe and is three times higher than in Germany," said Paul Kenny, general secretary of the GMB union.

"Where are all the jobs that were promised to make up for the hundreds of thousands of jobs lost in the public sector?"

Exactly, Cameron's government talks the talk, but the poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer - no change from a Conservative government there, then .....

[Chuck]

8.3% doesn't actually sound too disastrous to me. Probably because I hear on the news every day about the unemployment rate in Spain.

[arista]

Originally Posted by chuck.pass

8.3% doesn't actually sound too disastrous to me. Probably because I hear on the news every day about the unemployment rate in Spain.

Yes Spain is far worse.