Cannock Chase MP, Amanda Milling has welcomed the latest fall in the area’s unemployment figures.
According to the most recent figures released by the Department for Work and Pensions, the area is now just outside the lowest third of unemployment areas across the country, with just 763 people unemployed - news that Amanda Milling has described as "Fantastic".
The number of local Jobseeker Allowance claimants has dropped by 22% since August 2014. The total number unemployed in the Cannock Chase constituency has fallen by 1559 since the 2010 General Election, suggesting growing business confidence and opportunities for the future. The unemployment rate represents a rate of 1.5% of the economically active population, the UK average is 1.5% higher at 2.5% unemployed.
Amanda Milling said: "This is fantastic news for the area and represents the growing recovery in the constituency since the crash of 2008. We will still work to reduce the unemployment number, but the next great challenge is to encourage new and better skilled jobs into our area to broaden the base of the local economy and give our local school and college leavers more choices. We have seen more small and medium sized firms set up in here as well as new proposals, such as Mill Green, that represent significant confidence in our constituency. I am sure we all want more of this investment and job creation.”
Nationally this month’s figures show that employment rose 42,000 this quarter, with the employment rate returning to the record high of 73.5%. A record number of people are now working in the private sector with a rise of 53,000 this quarter - 2.5 million more people than in 2010.
Wages continue to rise with average pay up by 2.9% over the year, easily outstripping inflation of 0.1% and long-term unemployment has fallen 28,000 this quarter, to its lowest level in six years.
Amanda Milling added “Economists believe the UK jobs market continues to strengthen, with nearly three-quarters of a million vacancies in the economy at any one time. Of course there is still more to do, and we will continue to support those who want to work and who want to get on in their work and we will continue to help businesses create jobs and employ people with the right skills.