New figures revealing the impact of coronavirus on job losses in the constituency show an increase in those claiming unemployment benefits of almost 40%.
There are now 4,840 claimants of unemployment benefits in the Stockton North constituency – 1,765 higher than the number in March 2020 before lockdown came into effect.
Shockingly, over a fifth of those new claims come from young people aged 18-24. Stockton North also finds itself well above the UK unemployment rate, with 8.4% of the population aged 16-64 now claiming unemployment benefits, compared to the UK equivalent rate of 6.5%
Alex says
“Stockton entered lockdown with already higher than average unemployment rates and further job losses will hit deprived areas like Stockton even harder. The rate here is now around a third higher than the national average.”
“We’ve already seen huge job losses as a result of the pandemic, and as the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme finishes at the end of next month, I expect we’ll see unemployment soar even more.”
“We need to see proper Government support in our area, particularly for young people, otherwise the inequalities currently faced by our region will only deepen.”
