more grim news
http://latestnews.virginmedia.com/ne...top_18_million
Unemployment reached an 11-year high when another huge increase in the numbers
looking for work edged the total closer to the two million mark.
Official figures for the three months to September showed that 1.82 million people were out of work, an increase of 140,000 from the previous quarter.
It was the highest figure since the end of 1997 and confirmed the fears of unions and analysts that the politically-sensitive two million mark would soon be breached.
The number of people claiming jobseekers allowance rose by 36,500 last month to 980,900, the highest figure since the spring of 2001 and the worst monthly increase since 1992.
The so-called claimant count has now increased for nine months in a row and is 154,800 higher than a year ago.
The number of people in work fell by 99,000 to 29.4 million and vacancies were down by 40,000 to 589,000, according to the Office for National Statistics.
The grim figures do not take into account recent job loss announcements, including news of more than 5,000 cuts on Tuesday by firms including Virgin Media, Yell, Taylor Wimpey and GlaxoSmithKline.
The unemployment rate is now 5.8%, the highest since early 2000, while the number of people looking for work has jumped by 182,000 over the past year.
The number of unemployed men was 1.07 million, up 85,000 over the latest quarter, while 55,000 more women joined the ranks of the unemployed, up to 750,000. Unemployment among 18 to 24-year-olds increased by 53,000 to 579,000, the highest figure since 1995.
Long term unemployment has also increased, with the numbers out of work for longer than a year up by 20,000 to 435,000.