Latest news: Unemployment down by 45,000

Unemployment in the UK has fallen by 45,000 to 2.63million since January. 16/05/2012

The Office of National Statistics has set the jobless rate at 8.2%.

Youth employment now stands at 1.02 million, down by 17,000, despite the fact that the UK is currently in recession.

Chris Grayling, the employment minister, said, ‘For a number of months now, employment has been growing and this is starting to feed through into improving unemployment figures. It’s a welcome step in the right direction.’

However, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) thinks that unemployment could rise over the next five years.

Carmen Watson, managing director of Pertemps Network Group, said, ‘The outlook should technically look good for the future. However, there is still more work to be done, particularly for vulnerable groups such as young people.

‘As well as being aided by increasing the number of opportunities available to them, young people also need support and good advice on the current jobs market and how they will need to tailor their job-hunting strategies accordingly. Nurturing their talent and providing them with the correct information will translate into young people being better equipped to enter the workforce,’ added Watson.