North West sees big rise in claimant count since coronavirus
New research shows the North West is one of the worst affected regions for a big uptick in unemployment claims since the coronavirus pandemic hit the UK.
Claimant counts are up everywhere in the country, but Northern and Midlands cities and towns have seen the highest increases in the UK, and have the highest rates overall, according to new statistics from independent think tank Centre for Cities.
They show that people claiming unemployment benefits has increased the most in Blackpool, Liverpool, Hull, Belfast and Manchester.
Based on the latest claimant count figures from The Office for National Statistics, the research looks at the impact the first few weeks of the lockdown – up to April 9 – have had on employment opportunities across the country.
Nationally, it showed that in April, 2.1 million people in the UK filed a claim for either Universal Credit or Jobseeker’s Allowance, a rise of approximately 850,000 compared with March 2020. No city or large town across the UK was left unaffected.
However, the data also showed that cities and large towns in the North and Midlands have been hardest hit.
When looking at the monthly change, cities in the North and Midlands have recorded the biggest percentage point increases in claimant counts compared with March 2020.
Between March and April this year, the claimant count went up by 2.02 percentage points nationally, but by 3.44 percentage points in Blackpool, 2.86 in Liverpool and 2.6 in Manchester.
No city in the South of England was among the top 10 cities with the largest increases. In fact, claimant counts in Cambridge increased by less than one percentage point, and in Oxford by just 1.10 percentage points.
Some 18 cities – none of which are in the South of England – now have a claimant count rate higher than that of Hull in March 2020 – ie 5.9%, the highest rate among cities back in March 2020.
Centre for Cities said this is reinforcing existing patterns in unemployment claimants, with rates higher in cities and large towns with weaker economies in the North and Midlands.
As of April 2020, Blackpool, Hull and Birmingham are the three cities with the highest levels of claimant counts – 8.9, 8.7 and eight per cent, respectively, much higher than the national average of 5.1%.
Liverpool’s figure was 7.6% and Manchester’s stood at 6.7%.
While the top 10 cities for claimant counts are all in the North and Midlands, the 10 cities with the lowest claimant counts are in the South of England and Scotland, with York being the only Northern exception.
At a claimant count below three per cent, Cambridge and Aldershot are the two places faring best on this measure.
A number of factors are driving these results – industry composition, use of the Job Retention Scheme, eligibility for benefits among others – but, the think tank says, one thing is certain, unemployment is rising fast, especially in places that already had weaker economies.
The report says that reducing this number will be the biggest challenge for the Government for months ahead.
