Recession will hit northern cities hardest says report
CITIES in the north of England will be the worst affected by recession, a new report suggests.
In the economic prosperity rankings of 64 cities, Hull was last placed as least prosperous; Leeds ranked 17th – better than Manchester at 19; York ranked 21st, and Huddersfield 26th.
The report from the Centre for Cities charity ranks the economic performance of the UK’s largest cities and towns, drawing on data from the most recent releases from Government sources.
Of the 10 places most at risk in the construction sector, Sheffield is joint fifth placed with Wigan hile Barnsley is eighth placed.
Hull has seen the highest increase in the country for job seekers’ allowance claims, between November 2007 and 2008 – with 1.8%, followed by Barnsley at 1.4%.
The report said: “Cities up and down the country were the big winners during the years of economic expansion. Core cities such as Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds all added in excess of 50,000 jobs over the past decade.
“Now, however, cities are starting to feel the effects of the recession on their local labour markets. Many urban areas across Britain are now experiencing significant short-term job losses and rising unemployment: at least 60% of the increase in Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) claimants between June and September 2008 was concentrated in cities.”
