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Unemployment highest in 14 years

Jul 16 2009

Unemployment rose by 281,000 over the three months to May to 2.38 million – the highest level since 1995.

The unemployment rate now stands at 7.6 per cent of the economically active population, up from 6.9 per cent over the previous quarter, according to the office for national statistics.

David Kern, chief economist at the British Chambers of Commerce, says: ‘These figures make grim reading and confirm that although the recession is easing, unemployment is set to continue rising at a rapid pace. On the basis of these numbers, we reaffirm our forecast that unemployment will peak at around 3.2 million next year.

Brendan Barber, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, says: 'Today's figures are truly horrendous. The people who have lost their jobs this month and who fear they will in months to come are not talking of recovery or green shoots.’

However, the Centre for Economics and Business Research, a thinktank, warned that further jobs cuts would be needed to compensate for weaker economic activity, adding that significant cuts are still expected in the public sector due to the deterioration in the public finances.

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