Claimant count falls across Rochdale

Christian Spence, Research Manager at Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce

The latest Labour Market Statistics publication from the Office for National Statistics shows that the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance in Rochdale fell by 173 in April to 7,368.

Each of the ten boroughs in Greater Manchester recorded a fall both in the overall JSA claimant count and in the number of under-25s claiming JSA.

Christian Spence, Research Manager at Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, said: “The Chamber of Commerce’s Quarterly Economic Survey for the first three months of 2013 suggested that there may be a small increase in the number of unemployed across the North West and today’s official statistics bear that out.

"The fall of 16,000 people in employment and a rise in unemployment of 18,000 is never good news, but these figures are a comparison with the last quarter of 2012 and it is likely that we will have seen some seasonal reductions in jobs as companies that hired additional labour in the run-up to Christmas shed some of that capacity in the New Year.

"Changes on the year show an increase of 58,000 employees in the North West since the beginning of 2012 which, when set against the continued public sector redundancies over that period, confirm that the private sector is continuing to create net employment.

“We have, however, a number of concerns. The data shows a continued rise in the number of hours worked alongside a further drop in productivity, highlighting that whilst more people are working more hours, the country is producing less overall output. Alongside pay rises of just 0.4% in the past year against current inflation of 2.8%, the squeeze on household incomes continues and is having a significant effect on the spending abilities of the public, further weighing down on growth.

“There is mixed news in these figures, and we have been warning government for a number of years about the risks to the domestic regional economy if internal demand was not supported. The region’s construction sector continues to see constrained order books at a time when demand for housing and infrastructure is strong.

"The Government could and should have done more to support the region’s economy earlier, and we have concerns that last week’s Queen’s Speech shows little evidence that the government intends to change its path.

"The North West is a strong and important part of the UK’s economy and Greater Manchester is the primary urban heart of the region, but government must look to act quickly if it is to avoid permanently disadvantaging the region by concentrating its efforts on London and the South East.”