Last updated at 12:46, Thursday, 16 August 2012

UNEMPLOYMENT in Cumbria increased in July, ending a run of four consecutive monthly falls.

Official figures show there were 8,948 people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance, 169 more than in June and 452 more than this time last
year.

The county’s unemployment rate rose from 2.8 to 2.9 per cent.

Carlisle’s jobless total increased by 55 to 2,333, giving the city an unemployment rate of 3.5 per cent.

Allerdale’s total rose by 51 to 1,916 (3.3 per cent), Copeland’s by 35 to 1,628 (3.7 per cent), and Eden’s by seven to 407 (1.3 per cent).

The number of long term unemployed young people has risen by more than 200 in the past year - as dole queues across south and west Cumbria grow.

The latest monthly count shows there were 1,816 people across Barrow claiming out of work benefits in July, down from 1,831 the previous month.

Across Copeland claimant counts rose from 1,593 to 1,628 and from 812 to 848 in South Lakeland.

Youth unemployment remains a problem across the area with 620 18 to 24 year olds claiming Job Seeker's Allowance in Barrow, meaning one in every ten young people is on the dole. A further 590 young people - one in every nine are on the dole in Copeland and 225 - one in thirty, in South Lakes.

Long term youth unemployment where a person has been claiming the benefit for more than a year has soared across the area. In Barrow numbers stand at 115 compared to July 2011 when no young person had been in receipt of the payments for a year. Across Copeland there are 105 young people claiming long term, up from just five 12 months ago.

The picture across South Lakeland is better with numbers increasing from five to 15.

Nationally, the seasonally-adjusted claimant count fell by 5,900 to 1.59m. The Olympics has been credited with helping reducing unemployment.

The rolling total, which includes people not eligible for Jobseeker’s Allowance, fell by 46,000 to 2.56m.

Average earnings increased by 1.6 per cent in the year to June.

First published at 10:55, Wednesday, 15 August 2012
Published by http://www.in-cumbria.com