THE NUMBER of people out of work and claiming jobless benefits in Northern Ireland soared to 57,800 last month, according to latest official figures.
The Office for National Statistics said claimant count unemployment in Britain as a whole rose by 2,300 in August, confounding expectations for a modest decline and bringing to an end a six-month period in which it had fallen by more than 150,000.
The statistics show a further 900 people applied for jobless benefits reflecting, according to at least one local economist, the “magnitude of the economic problems” now facing Northern Ireland.
Esmond Birnie, chief economist with PricewaterhouseCoopers, said the North’s steady rise in unemployment and its widening economic gap relative to the rest of the UK was yet another sign of the “structural malaise” in the local economy.
Although Northern Ireland’s overall unemployment rate from May to July fell to an estimated 6.8 per cent when compared on yearly basis, the unemployment rate actually rose by 0.2 percentage points.
According to Ulster Bank chief economist Richard Ramsey, the number of people claiming unemployment benefits is back to the level it was when the Belfast Agreement was signed in April 1998.
The bleak scenario in Northern Ireland is in stark contrast to the rest of the UK where unemployment is falling and the general economic climate is showing some positive signs of recovery.
The number of people in work in Britain rose by a record 286,000 in the three months to July. However, more than half of this was due to part-time positions and the increase was also flattered by a large number of students leaving university and taking jobs.
The less-timely ILO measure of unemployment, which includes those out of work but not claiming benefit, fell by 8,000 in the three months to July to 2.467 million, the smallest fall since the three months to April.
The North’s Enterprise Minister said the latest statistics showed how the economic downturn was continuing to have an impact locally. Arlene Foster said the rate of job losses had slowed this year compared to last and there had been a notable increase in the number of manufacturing jobs. – (Additional reporting: Reuters)
