6:06pm Wednesday 17th March 2010
THE number of people signing on the dole in Oxfordshire has fallen.
Figures from the Office of National Statistics show 8,819 people claimed jobseeker’s allowance in February, a fall of 337 on the previous month.
The January figure had seen a big rise after many temporary Christmas jobs ended.
The statistics show the claimant count has fallen in the county for five out of the last six months.
Oxfordshire Town Chambers Network director Iain Nicholson said: “A drop in unemployment is always welcome because it’s good news for the people and families behind the statistics.
“At the same time Oxfordshire business will not take too much from a single month’s figures, and recognise the need to continue the hard work that is keeping the county’s economy moving forward.”
Nationally, the claimant count was 1.59 million, a fall of 32,300 and the biggest monthly reduction since the end of 1997.
The good news was tempered with other figures showing 8.16 million people were now classed as economically inactive.
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