23/02/2010 - Unemployment in Hampshire

HAMPSHIRE'S UNEMPLOYMENT COUNT THE HIGHEST FOR OVER 10 YEARS

Hampshire's unemployment figures, which rose by over 1800 claimants to a total of 33,332 in the month of January, have been described as “very worrying and a sign that the recession is worsening rather than improving” by Caroline Nokes, Conservative Candidate for Romsey and Southampton North.

The unemployment rate in Hampshire is now at 3.1%  and for Southampton it is even worse at 4.3%. In the month of January Southampton saw a jump of over 300 in the jobless figure to almost 7,000 claimants of Job Seekers Allowance.

Commenting on the figures Caroline Nokes said:

“Mr Brown used to claim he had put an end to boom and bust so I invite him to come to Southampton to meet the city’s 6993 unemployed people and to TestValley where there are almost 1500 further job seekers. They will tell him what they think of his idle boast. One of the most worrying aspects of these unemployment statistics is the number of young people entering unemployment with almost 500 extra young people in Hampshire joining the dole queue in January.”