Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries

BRIEFING PAPER Number 7950, 7 February 2018 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries By Andrew Powell Contents: 1. Employment 2. Unemployment 3. Types of employment 4. Average Earnings 5. Notes on sources 6. Annex tables www.parliament.uk/commons-library intranet.parliament.uk/commons-library papers@parliament.uk @commonslibrary

2 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries Contents Summary 3 1. Employment 5 1.1 Employment by gender 5 1.2 Employment over time 6 2. Unemployment 9 2.1 Unemployment by gender 9 2.2 Unemployment over time 10 3. Types of employment 12 3.1 Full-time and Part-time 12 Part-time work by gender 12 3.2 Self-employment 13 Self-employment by gender 14 4. Average Earnings 15 4.1 Average earnings over time 15 4.2 Average weekly earnings by gender 16 How has pay for women and men changed over time? 17 5. Notes on sources 19 6. Annex tables 20 Cover page image copyright Click & browse to copyright info for stock image

3 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 Summary This paper gives an overview of labour market statistics across the UK s regions and countries. The spreadsheet published alongside this paper includes a profile tool where you can select a region and generate a full summary of its labour market statistics. The table below shows the latest key labour market statistics for each of the UK s regions and countries. 1 Key Labour Market Statistics October 2016- September 2017 Employment rate Unemployment rate % working part-time % working self-employed North East 70.4 6.5 27.6 11.3 North West 72.6 4.7 25.5 13.5 Yorks and Humber 73.0 4.9 27.7 13.8 East Midlands 74.0 4.2 27.7 13.4 West Midlands 72.0 5.4 26.6 14.1 East 77.3 3.5 26.4 15.4 London 73.7 5.5 22.7 18.8 South East 78.4 3.4 27.7 16.6 South West 78.0 3.5 30.8 17.3 Wales 71.9 4.8 27.7 14.1 Scotland 73.9 4.3 26.8 12.5 Northern Ireland 69.2 4.7 25.2 15.1 UK 74.4 4.5 26.7 15.2 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey Employment Between October 2016 and September 2017 the employment rate was highest in the South East (78.4%) and lowest in Northern Ireland (69.2%). Recently employment rates across all regions and countries have been increasing. Employment rates have recovered to their pre-recession levels in all regions and countries with the exception of Scotland, where the employment rate remains 0.4 percentage points lower than in 2007/08. Unemployment People who are out of work and actively seeking work are classed as unemployed. This is different to being economically inactive, where someone is out of work but not looking for a job. Between October 2016 and September 2017 the unemployment rate was highest in the North East (6.5%) and lowest in the South East (3.4%). As with employment rates most UK regions and countries have seen their unemployment rate recover to pre-recession levels. However, the unemployment rate in Northern Ireland is 1.0 percentage points higher in 2016/17 than it was in 2007/08. Part-time employment Between October 2016 and September 2017 part-time working was most prevalent in the South West where 30.8% of those in employment were working part-time. Part-time 1 Data is taken from ONS, Annual Population Survey: Regional labour market statistics in the UK: October 2017

4 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries working was least prevalent in London where 22.7% of those in employment were working part-time. Self-employment Self-employment was most prevalent in London where 18.8% of those in employment were self-employed. Self-employment was least prevalent in the North East where 11.3% of workers were self-employed. Average weekly earnings The latest statistics from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings show that in April 2017 average weekly earnings were highest for full-time employees living in London ( 655) and lowest in Yorkshire and the Humber, Northern Ireland and the North East (all just over 500). Average weekly earnings for full-time employees are, after adjusting for changes in prices, below their pre-recession levels in every region and country in the UK. Section 5 includes notes on the sources of the statistics in this paper and key definitions of the terms used.

5 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 1. Employment Employment levels vary widely across the UK regions and countries. Between October 2016 and September 2017 the UK region with the highest employment rate was the South East at 78.4%. Northern Ireland had the lowest employment rate over this same period at 69.2%. This represents a 9.1 percentage point difference between the region with the highest and lowest employment rates. The UK-wide employment rate over this same period was 74.4%. 2 3 The employment rate is the percentage of those aged 16-64 who are in employment Definitions of labour market concepts can be found in Section 5. Northern Ireland North East Wales West Midlands North West Yorks and Humber London Scotland East Midlands UK East South West South East Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey Employment rate (%) October 2016- September 2017 60 65 70 75 80 How have the employment rates of the UK regions and countries compared over the last 13 years? The southern English regions (South East, South West and East) have consistently had the highest employment rates of the UK regions and countries since the current series began in 2004/05. The South East has had the highest regional employment rate in 10 of the 13 years in the series. Similarly the regions with the lowest employment rates have been fairly consistent. In almost every year since the 2008 recession, the regions with the lowest employment rates have been Wales, the North East and Northern Ireland. 1.1 Employment by gender In all UK regions and countries, men had higher employment rates than women. This is largely down to women being more likely to be economically inactive (not in work and not seeking work). Unsurprisingly, between October 2016 and September 2017 the highest employment rates for men and women were found in the southern English regions. The South West had the highest employment rate for women (74.2%), the highest employment rate for men was in the South East (83.1%). 2 ONS, Annual Population Survey: Regional labour market statistics in the UK: October 2017 3 Figures throughout this paper are for October to September unless otherwise indicated

6 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries Northern Ireland had the lowest employment rate for both men (73.1%) and women (65.5%). Across the UK as a whole the employment rate for women was 69.7% and for men it was 79.1% over this period. London had the biggest difference between the employment rates for men and women; the rate for men was 13.4 percentage points higher than the rate for women. The difference was smallest in Scotland where the employment rate for men was 6.6 percentage points higher than the rate for women. Employment rate (%) by gender October 2016- September 2017 Men Women Northern Ireland 73.1 65.5 North East 74.2 66.7 Wales 75.3 68.6 North West 76.6 68.7 Scotland 77.3 70.7 West Midlands 77.6 66.4 Yorks and Humber 77.8 68.2 East Midlands 79.3 68.9 London 80.2 67.2 South West 81.9 74.2 East 82.1 72.6 South East 83.1 73.7 UK 79.1 69.7 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey 1.2 Employment over time Changes in the last year Between 2015/16 and 2016/17 the UK employment rate grew by 0.7 percentage points. The employment rate increased in all regions and countries of the UK apart from the East Midlands, where it fell by 0.3 percentage points. The strongest growth in the employment rate was in the South East where the employment rate grew by 1.2 percentage points, a growth rate 0.5 percentage points higher than the national average. Small changes in the employment rate (or lack thereof) could be down to survey error rather than actual changes. Recent trend All UK regions and countries saw their employment rates fall in the immediate aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008/09. Most UK regions and countries employment rates have now recovered or surpassed their pre-recession levels, with the exception of Scotland. Scotland s employment rate was 0.4 percentage points lower in 2016/17 than in 2007/08. For detailed statistics on regions and countries employment rates since 2004/05 use the profile tool in the accompanying spreadsheet

7 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 London has had the strongest growth in employment rates since the downturn. London s employment rate was 4.6 percentage points higher in 2016/17 than it was in 2007/08. The growth in the employment rate in London was almost double that of the next best performing region, Wales. 6 Employment rate change, % pts 2007/08-2016/17 4 2 0-2 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey Notes: Data refers to annual periods between October and September Longer term trend Data from the Labour Force Survey shows employment rates in UK regions and countries back to 1992. 4 The graph below shows the employment rate in the four UK countries since 1992. The employment rate in Northern Ireland suffered more than other UK regions and countries after recessions in the early 1990s and late-2000s. The employment rate in England was higher than that for Scotland in the 1990s and the initial half of the first decade of the 2000s. In the second half of the decade the rate for Scotland was generally higher than that for England, and since then the employment rate in Scotland has mirrored fairly closely the employment rate in England. Wales has consistently had an employment rate above that of Northern Ireland, but below those for England and Scotland. 4 ONS, Regional labour market statistics in the UK: October 2017

8 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries 80 Employment rate (%) 75 70 65 60 55 1992 1995 1998 2001 2004 2007 2010 2013 2016 Source: ONS,Labour Force Survey, LF3Y, LF3Z, LF42, LF5Z England Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Regional differences in the employment rate within England have been stark. For example the employment rate has been consistently lower in the North East than in the South East. Since 1992 the gap between the employment rate in the two regions has ranged from a peak of 15.0 percentage points in the three months to April 1999 to a low of 6.5 in the three months to August 2012. The difference between the two regions was 7.9 percentage points in the three months to October 2017. 85 Employment rate (%) 80 75 South East 70 65 60 North East 55 1992 1995 1998 2001 2004 2007 2010 2013 2016 Source: ONS,Labour Force Survey, LF3P, LF3W

9 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 2. Unemployment As with the employment rate there are regional differences in the unemployment rate across the UK. Between October 2016 and September 2017 the UK region with the highest unemployment rate was the North East at 6.5%. The lowest unemployment rate over this same period was in the South East at 3.4%. There was a difference of 3.1 percentage points between the highest and lowest regions. The UK wide unemployment rate between July 2016 and June 2017 was 4.5%. The unemployment rate is the percentage of those economically active (those employed and those unemployed) who are unemployed. Definitions of labour market concepts can be found in Section 5. Unemplyoment rate (%) October 2016 - September 2017 South East South West East East Midlands Scotland UK North West Northern Ireland Wales Yorks and Humber West Midlands London North East Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 How have the unemployment rates of the UK regions and countries compared over the last 13 years? The regions and countries with the lowest and highest unemployment rates have generally remained the same over this time period. The southern English regions (South East, South West and East of England) have consistently been amongst the regions with the lowest unemployment rates. The North East has had the highest unemployment rate of all UK regions and countries for the last eight years, and London and the West Midlands are generally amongst the areas with the highest rates. Northern Ireland has seen the most change in its unemployment rate. In the late 2000s it was fairly low in comparison to other UK regions and countries, but in recent years it has had some of the higher rates. It now has the sixth highest unemployment rate of all the UK regions and countries. 2.1 Unemployment by gender Unemployment rates are higher for men than women across the whole of the UK, and also in the majority of the UK s regions and countries. Between July 2016 and June 2017 London and the North East was the region with the highest unemployment rate for women at 6.0%. The unemployment rate for women in London was higher than that for men in 2016/17. The East and Northern Ireland had the lowest unemployment rates for women at 3.3%. The unemployment rate for men was the lowest in the South East at 3.2%. The North East had the highest unemployment rate for men at 6.9%.

10 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries Northern Ireland had the biggest gap between the unemployment rate for men and women. The unemployment rate for men was 2.6 percentage points higher than that for women in 2016/17. Unemployment rate (%) by gender October 2016- September 2017 Men Women South East 3.2 3.5 South West 3.6 3.4 East 3.7 3.3 East Midlands 3.9 4.5 Scotland 4.8 3.8 Wales 4.8 4.9 London 5.0 6.0 Yorks and Humber 5.1 4.6 North West 5.4 3.9 West Midlands 5.7 5.0 Northern Ireland 6.0 3.3 North East 6.9 6.0 UK 4.6 4.3 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey 2.2 Unemployment over time Changes in the last year The unemployment rate in all UK regions and countries except Wales was lower in 2016/17 than in 2015/16. Northern Ireland had the biggest fall in the annual rate of unemployment, a fall of 1.4 percentage points. The increase for Wales was just 0.1 percentage points. Recent trend In all UK regions and countries the unemployment rate rose after the financial crisis of 2008/09. In most UK regions and countries the unemployment rate is now less than its 2007/08 level. The exception is Northern Ireland where the unemployment rate is 1.0% percentage points higher in 2016/17 than it was in 2007/08. Prior to the recession, Northern Ireland s unemployment rate was the lowest in the UK.

11 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.0-0.5-1.0-1.5-2.0 Unemployment rate change 2007/08-2016/17 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey Notes: Data refers to annual periods between October and September Longer term trend Data from the Labour Force Survey details the unemployment rates in UK countries back to 1992. Unemployment rates fell across UK countries in the 1990s and 2000s but increased after the 2008/09 financial crisis. In all UK countries unemployment rates have been falling since around 2013. Unemployment rate (%) 14 12 10 8 6 England 4 Wales Scotland 2 Northern Ireland 0 1992 1995 1998 2001 2004 2007 2010 2013 2016 Source: ONS,Labour Force Survey, YCNL, YCNM, YCNN, ZSFB

12 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries 3. Types of employment 3.1 Full-time and Part-time Between October 2016 and September 2017 the South West had the highest percentage of people in employment working part-time at 30.8%. London had the lowest percentage of part-time workers at 22.7%. Nationally, 26.7% of workers were employed part-time. South West North East Wales Yorks and Humber East Midlands South East Scotland UK West Midlands East Northern Ireland North West London Percentage in employment working part-time October 2016 - September 2017 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% Trend over time In the UK as a whole part-time employment has been rising since the 1950s. 5 In every region and country within the UK, there was also a higher proportion of employed people working part-time in the 12 months to September 2017 than in the 12 months to September 2005. The largest increase was in Northern Ireland where the percentage part-time working was 3.8 percentage points higher in 2016/17 than it was in 2004/05. 6 Part-time work by gender Across all UK regions women in work are considerably more likely than men to be employed part-time. Across the UK 41.8% of women in employment were working part-time compared to 13.3% of men. The South West had the highest percentage of female workers employed part-time at 48.0%. London had the lowest at 34.1%. Use the accompanying profile tool to see how the numbers of those working part time has changed in your region. 5 ONS, UK labour market statistical bulletin, EMP01 6 Analysis of Annual Population Survey data

13 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 London North West Northern Ireland UK Scotland West Midlands Wales North East East Yorks and Humber South East East Midlands South West Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey 3.2 Self-employment London had the highest proportion of workers who are self-employed at 18.8% in 2016/17. This is 3.6 percentage points higher than the national average for the same period. The North East had the lowest proportion of workers working part-time at 11.3%. North East Scotland East Midlands North West Yorks and Humber West Midlands Wales Northern Ireland UK East South East South West London Percentage of women who work part-time October 2016 - September 2017 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Percentage in employment who are self-employed October 2016 - September 2017 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% Trend over time The trend nationwide has been a steady increase in the proportion of workers who are self-employed since the 1990s. The proportion of workers who are self-employed has increased by 2.4 percentage points since 2004/05. Most of the regions and countries of the UK have also seen an increase of at least 2 percentage points. The region with the highest growth was London where the proportion of workers who were self-employed was 3.0 percentage points higher in 2016/17 than in 2004/05. Northern Ireland was the only region where the percentage of workers who are self-employed has not risen but the data here is volatile because of a small number of survey respondents. To see how selfemployment has changed in your region use the accompanying profile tool.

14 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries Self-employment by gender In all UK regions and countries men were more likely to be selfemployed than women in 2016/17. The proportion of working men who are self-employed was highest in London at 23.1%. London also had the highest proportion of women working as self-employed at 13.7%. The North East had the lowest proportion of working men and women who were self-employed at 14.0% and 8.4% respectively. Self-employment (%) by gender October 2016 - September 2017 North East Scotland East Midlands North West Yorks and Humber West Midlands Wales East UK South East Northern Ireland South West London Women Men Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25%

15 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 4. Average Earnings Average weekly earnings for full-time employees vary across the UK regions and countries. Average here refers to the median, the point at which half earn more and half earn less. At 655 per week, average weekly earnings for full-time employees in London are the highest of all UK regions and countries in 2017. This is 105 a week above the UK average ( 550 per week) and 58 a week higher than the next best performing region, the South East ( 597 per week). Average weekly earnings for full-time employees were lowest in the Yorkshire and the Humber, Northern Ireland and the North East all at just over 500 per week, around 45 a week lower than the UK average. Average weekly earnings, full-time employees April 2017 Yorks & Humber Northern Ireland North East Wales North West East Midlands West Midlands South West Scotland UK East South East London 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings Notes: Data based on region of residence How have average weekly earnings for full-time employees in UK regions and countries compared over the last few years? Since 2011 7 the three regions with the highest average weekly earnings for full-time employees has not changed. London has had the highest weekly earnings followed by the South East and then the East of England. The regions/ countries with the lowest average weekly earnings has tended to stay the same as well. Northern Ireland and the North East have consistently been among the regions with the lowest average weekly earnings for full-time employees. Wales has also frequently been among the regions with the lowest average weekly earnings. 4.1 Average earnings over time Changes in the last year In real terms, taking into account inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index, most UK regions and countries experienced a fall 7 There is a break in the series for median weekly earnings at 2011, therefore this discussion only relates to the series since the break.

16 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries in average weekly earnings for full-time employees between 2016 and 2017. In real terms average weekly earnings grew modestly in London (+0.9%). The largest fall in average weekly earnings was in Yorkshire and the Humber where, real terms, they fell by 1.8%. Across the UK average weekly earnings fell by 0.5% in real terms between April 2016 and April 2017. Changes between single years could be affected by survey error and therefore do not necessarily indicate a shifting trend. Longer term trend Average weekly earnings for full-time employees have, in real terms, suffered a squeeze since the financial crisis in 2008/09. Average weekly earnings for full-time employees have fallen in real terms in all of the UK s regions and countries since 2008. In Northern Ireland average weekly earnings have almost recovered to pre-recession levels but in London, where the pay squeeze has been most pronounced, average weekly earnings are 7.9% lower in real terms than they were in April 2008. Across the UK as a whole, average weekly earnings are 5.8% lower in real terms on 2008 levels. 0% -1% -2% -3% -4% -5% -6% -7% -8% -9% Percentage change in average weekly earnings Real terms, April 2008 - April 2017 Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, CPI: ONS series D7BT Notes: Data based on region of residence 4.2 Average weekly earnings by gender Average weekly earnings for full-time employees are higher for men than for women in all UK regions and countries. The table below shows the average weekly earnings for male and female full-time employees.

17 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 Average weekly earnings, full-time employees, by gender April 2017 Men Women Northern Ireland 517 482 Scotland 537 463 North East 543 452 Yorks and Humber 546 441 North West 551 465 East Midlands 559 445 West Midlands 561 455 South West 575 460 Wales 580 498 UK 592 494 East 623 502 South East 652 522 London 701 602 Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings Notes: Data based on region of residence How has pay for women and men changed over time? Since the financial crisis in 2008/09 average weekly earnings for fulltime female employees have performed better than those for males in all UK regions and countries. In some cases there has been a real terms increase, in the average weekly earnings of full-time female employees. The highest increase in real average weekly earnings for all full-time employee women since 2008 was in Northern Ireland (4.6%). Wales, Scotland and the North East have also experienced an increase in the real earnings for women.

18 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries % change in real average weekly earnings, by gender April 2008- April 2017 Men -1% -6% -11% 4% Women -1% -6% -11% Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, CPI: ONS series D7BT Notes: Data based on region of residence

19 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 5. Notes on sources Data for employment (including full-time and part-time and selfemployment) and unemployment is taken from the Annual Population Survey published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). Data on long term trends in employment and unemployment is taken from the Labour Force Survey also published by ONS. Data for average weekly earnings is taken from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. Annual Population Survey Data from the ONS Annual Population Survey relates to the 12 month period between June and July for each respective year. All levels are rounded to the nearest thousand. Labour Force Survey Data from the ONS Labour Force Survey refers to three month rolling periods and is seasonally adjusted. Key definitions Employment level: People aged 16+ in employment. Employment rate: Percentage of people aged 16-64 in employment. Unemployment level: People aged 16+ who are unemployed- Not in work, have sought work in the past month and are ready to work within the next two weeks. Unemployment rate: percentage of people economically active aged 16+ who are unemployed. Part-time employment level: Number of people aged 16+ in work who are working part-time. Part-time employment percent: Percentage of those working who are working part-time. Self-employment level: Number of people aged 16+ who are self-employed (self-report as selfemployed). Self-employment percent: Percentage of those working who are self-employed. Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings Data from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings relates to April of each given year. This data is for full-time employee jobs only and therefore excludes parttime and self-employed workers. This data relates to those living in the defined region rather than those working there. All real terms data has been indexed to 2017 prices. Average refers to the median; the point at which half of full-time employees earn more than and half earn less than. There are two breaks in the series at years 2006 and 2011 where survey methodology changed. Comparisons across these time periods should take account of these breaks.

20 Labour market statistics: UK regions and countries 6. Annex tables Employment level (16+), UK regions and countries, 2004/05-2016/17, thousands 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 North East 1,134 1,141 1,162 1,159 1,133 1,131 1,107 1,118 1,122 1,152 1,171 1,185 1,191 North West 3,155 3,174 3,182 3,202 3,138 3,159 3,157 3,168 3,200 3,191 3,269 3,322 3,365 Yorks and Humber 2,395 2,392 2,412 2,430 2,377 2,361 2,345 2,368 2,412 2,432 2,521 2,534 2,548 East Midlands 2,081 2,124 2,152 2,155 2,119 2,110 2,113 2,124 2,124 2,193 2,226 2,251 2,238 West Midlands 2,484 2,489 2,506 2,505 2,452 2,445 2,434 2,470 2,520 2,556 2,597 2,627 2,667 East 2,746 2,745 2,748 2,807 2,784 2,764 2,798 2,830 2,880 2,924 2,982 3,000 3,027 London 3,542 3,554 3,669 3,761 3,759 3,796 3,854 3,943 4,052 4,223 4,355 4,497 4,594 South East 4,122 4,147 4,182 4,219 4,197 4,173 4,197 4,214 4,257 4,359 4,419 4,454 4,539 South West 2,451 2,474 2,537 2,555 2,512 2,512 2,510 2,519 2,552 2,593 2,676 2,695 2,731 Wales 1,320 1,327 1,342 1,359 1,324 1,325 1,318 1,333 1,360 1,381 1,398 1,412 1,423 Scotland 2,445 2,475 2,527 2,555 2,508 2,475 2,475 2,483 2,482 2,550 2,580 2,575 2,606 Northern Ireland 748 763 784 795 768 773 793 797 797 813 813 832 837 UK 28,623 28,806 29,201 29,502 29,070 29,023 29,103 29,368 29,759 30,367 31,008 31,384 31,765 Employment rate (16-64), UK regions and countries, 2004/05-2016/17 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 North East 68.8 68.8 69.6 68.9 67.0 66.6 64.9 65.7 66.1 68.0 69.0 69.9 70.4 North West 70.8 70.6 70.2 70.1 68.4 68.5 68.2 68.5 69.2 69.0 70.6 71.6 72.6 Yorks and Humber 72.5 71.6 71.5 71.5 69.4 68.4 67.7 68.5 69.5 70.2 72.4 72.4 73.0 East Midlands 73.8 74.3 74.4 73.9 72.2 71.2 70.9 71.2 71.2 73.4 73.5 74.3 74.0 West Midlands 71.7 71.0 70.8 70.3 68.5 67.9 67.0 68.0 68.8 69.6 70.7 71.0 72.0 East 76.6 75.6 74.8 75.4 74.7 73.4 73.3 74.1 74.9 75.9 76.8 76.8 77.3 London 68.2 67.4 68.6 69.2 67.8 67.5 67.2 67.9 69.2 71.2 72.3 73.5 73.7 South East 77.4 77.0 76.8 76.6 75.6 74.6 74.4 74.7 74.8 75.9 76.7 77.2 78.4 South West 75.5 75.5 76.5 76.4 74.6 73.9 73.7 73.7 74.6 75.4 77.3 77.3 78.0 Wales 69.3 69.2 69.0 69.3 67.2 66.8 66.3 67.2 68.3 69.5 70.3 71.1 71.9 Scotland 72.7 73.1 74.1 74.3 72.3 71.0 70.5 70.6 70.5 72.3 73.1 72.8 73.9 Northern Ireland 66.9 66.9 68.1 68.3 65.5 65.4 66.9 67.1 66.6 68.0 67.6 68.9 69.2 UK 72.6 72.2 72.5 72.5 70.9 70.2 69.8 70.3 70.9 72.1 73.2 73.7 74.4

21 Commons Library Briefing, 7 February 2018 Unemployment level (16+), UK regions and countries, 2004/05-2016/17, thousands 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 North East 68 80 79 84 114 120 126 135 128 111 96 86 82 North West 162 176 193 199 282 281 277 301 276 254 203 178 167 Yorks and Humber 110 144 139 150 208 219 244 244 241 212 163 150 130 East Midlands 95 112 113 122 164 169 174 190 178 138 117 99 97 West Midlands 129 148 153 164 251 240 242 234 255 201 158 159 153 East 109 131 122 126 178 196 198 210 194 165 132 120 110 London 272 307 277 278 351 380 406 399 398 329 295 286 266 South East 158 192 180 187 247 266 265 261 281 222 198 194 158 South West 87 99 98 102 156 157 161 158 161 145 113 116 99 Wales 68 75 76 82 116 117 123 122 120 102 93 70 72 Scotland 141 137 132 120 176 201 216 215 210 178 165 133 118 Northern Ireland 36 39 34 31 51 56 59 64 65 55 53 55 42 UK 1,436 1,639 1,597 1,646 2,295 2,403 2,492 2,535 2,506 2,113 1,787 1,645 1,493 Unemployment rate (16+), UK regions and countries, 2004/05-2016/17 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 North East 5.7 6.6 6.4 6.8 9.1 9.6 10.3 10.8 10.2 8.8 7.6 6.8 6.5 North West 4.9 5.2 5.7 5.8 8.2 8.2 8.1 8.7 7.9 7.4 5.9 5.1 4.7 Yorks and Humber 4.4 5.7 5.5 5.8 8.1 8.5 9.4 9.3 9.1 8.0 6.1 5.6 4.9 East Midlands 4.4 5.0 5.0 5.3 7.2 7.4 7.6 8.2 7.7 5.9 5.0 4.2 4.2 West Midlands 5.0 5.6 5.7 6.1 9.3 9.0 9.0 8.7 9.2 7.3 5.7 5.7 5.4 East 3.8 4.6 4.3 4.3 6.0 6.6 6.6 6.9 6.3 5.3 4.2 3.8 3.5 London 7.1 8.0 7.0 6.9 8.5 9.1 9.5 9.2 8.9 7.2 6.4 6.0 5.5 South East 3.7 4.4 4.1 4.2 5.6 6.0 5.9 5.8 6.2 4.8 4.3 4.2 3.4 South West 3.4 3.8 3.7 3.8 5.8 5.9 6.0 5.9 5.9 5.3 4.1 4.1 3.5 Wales 4.9 5.3 5.3 5.7 8.1 8.1 8.5 8.4 8.1 6.9 6.2 4.7 4.8 Scotland 5.5 5.2 5.0 4.5 6.6 7.5 8.0 8.0 7.8 6.5 6.0 4.9 4.3 Northern Ireland 4.6 4.8 4.2 3.8 6.3 6.8 7.0 7.5 7.6 6.4 6.1 6.2 4.7 UK 4.8 5.4 5.2 5.3 7.3 7.6 7.9 7.9 7.8 6.5 5.4 5.0 4.5

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