§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the trends in the numbers of those receiving benefits relating to unemployment in the last 12 months. [19395]
§ Malcolm WicksDuring the last 12 months unemployment has fallen below 1 million for the first time since 1975. The latest figures, for October 2001, show the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance at 951,100. Although this is 4,300 higher than in September, the labour market is still in a better position than a year ago, with claimant unemployment 95,700 lower than in October 2000.