Latest figures from the ONS show the unemployment rate rose to 5.2% in the three months to December. Up from 5.1% in the previous month and the highest level since January 2021…
The number of payrolled employees fell by an estimated 134,000 in the 12 months to January 2026. Public sector pay growth is approaching a record level of 7.2% compared with the private sector’s dismal 3.4% – the slowest in five years. Shadow Business Secretary Andrew Griffith said:
“These figures show the impact of a ‘zombie government’ with no plan for growth. Labour’s Jobs Tax, economic uncertainty and their red tape Employment Rights Bill are holding back hiring, creating a jobless generation.”
And this is before Labour’s Employment Rights Act kicks in…
Krishnan Guru-Murthy asked John Healey: “Just finally, I mean Andy Burnham has been very clear he wants Britain back in the European Union in his lifetime. Do you?”
The Chancellor replied: “I’m older than Andy Burnham. I don’t expect to see that.”