Chancellor Rishi Sunak is under pressure to protect more jobs as his furlough scheme ends this weekend
(Picture: PA)London is in an unprecedented unemployment crisis even before the furlough scheme ends this weekend, with benefit claimants here rocketing 171% since the Covid-19 crisis, figures showed today.
The furlough scheme will be replaced on Monday by the less generous Job Support Scheme, which is set to throw more people into joblessness.
Analysis of Office for National Statistics data from early March to October shows the claimant count surged in Inner and Outer London by 308,265 over the period to 488,140.
That largely comes on top of the 557,400 Londoners registered as furloughed in the most recent data. Many of those will now be facing redundancy as the scheme ends.
The figures, collated by the Evening Standard, add to pressure on the Government to do more to support struggling industries in lockdown.
A total of 8.1% of Londoners claim unemployment benefits compared with the UK average of 6.5%.
The true unemployment picture will be even worse, because many out of work are not included in the claimant count, which is a mix of old Job Seekers Allowance claims and Universal Credit applicants required to seek jobs.
Layoffs in hospitality, tourism and retail have sent hundreds of thousands of London households into dire straits.
Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UK Hospitality, said: “While the Government’s plan for jobs is a lifeline for many, it is simply not sufficient in central London where many hotels, bars and restaurants are facing trading levels below 10%. We are in danger of losing businesses, not just jobs, the longer this crisis continues.”
The claimant count has surged most in Newham, home of the Westfield Stratford shopping centre. There, the numbers jumped 17,145. Areas like Haringey and Brent have also seen major surges, up 13,440 and 15,190.
The figures were partly so stark because the labour market was strong going into the pandemic.
But the data shows even in areas of already high worklessness, the percentage increase has been unprecedented.
In Brent, Croydon, Tower Hamlets, Southwark and Newham, where unemployment has always been high, the claimant count more than doubled.
The new JSS scheme replacing the furlough system has been revised to make it more generous but experts say it is still likely to end in more job cuts.
Area
Claimant count increase since March
Camden
up 6910 to 11065
City of London
up 170 to 255
Hackney
up 11535 to 19010
Hammersmith & Fulham
up 6100 to 10655
Haringey
up 13440 to 20300
Islington
up 7720 to 13390
Kensington & Chelsea
up 3865 to 6190
Lambeth
up 12655 to 21445
Lewisham
up 12265 to 20385
Newham
up 17145 to 25010
Southwark
up 11865 to 20235
Tower Hamlets
up 12565 to 20620
Wandsworth
up 9430 to 14,300
Westminster
up 6310 to 10130
Outer London
Barking and Dagenham
up 8445 to 13970
Barnet
up 12500 to 18880
Bexley
up 5975 to 9185
Brent
up 15190 to 22575
Bromley
up 7760 to 11830
Croydon
up 13885 to 23415
Ealing
up 13885 to 23415
Greenwich
up 10260 to 16360
Harrow
up 7990 to 11285
Havering
up 6855 to 10880
Hillingdon
up 9935 to 14370
Hounslow
up 10055 to 16450
Kingston upon Thames
up 4100 to 6305
Merton
up 6530 to 10180
Redbridge
up 10935 to 15935
Richmond upon Thames
up 4120 to 6190
Sutton
up 4670 to 7795
Waltham Forest
up 12385 to 18530
