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Greater Manchester region is still a long way from recovery despite a fall in unemployment across the region economists today warned.
Figures released by the Office for National Statistics said the number of people out of work in the North West region stood at 319,000 for the period between April to June.
This equates to 9.1 per cent of the working population but is 10,000 fewer than in the previous three months.
The report also showed the number of those claiming Jobseekers Allowance has risen for the first time in five months, increasing by 814 to 84,550 from June to July.
The number of claimants aged 16-24 climbed by 300 to 24,700 as young people leaving full-time education sought employment for the first time.
However, on a more positive note the number of people in work across Greater Manchester also continued to rise 69,000 on the previous quarter.
Dr Brian Sloan, chief economist at Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, said:
“It is of course very disappointing that the Jobseeker’s Allowance count has increased, though there is some upward pressure resulting from young people leaving full-time education and a reduction in economic inactivity as people are moved off benefits.
If you go around not just the city but also the surrounding towns, you can see that it is very much on the way to recovery, but there is still some way to go. One of the issues is the fact that there are more people than jobs, but if there is a little bit of innovation in industry I feel that this could change before long.
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