New statistics show Wolverhampton has experienced a 5.3 per cent rise in unemployment in the thee months to October 2018. The situation marked a contrast to national figures showing record numbers of people in work.

Highlighting the contrast between national and local figures, Emma said:

“The recent figures show another increase in unemployment. Here in my constituency, long term unemployment and youth unemployment are up again this year for the eleventh month in a row.

“The number of claimants in my constituency has gone up by over 20% in the past year alone. I am deeply concerned by these recent rises.

“The government likes to boast about the national figure but these mask big regional variations. It is not good enough to talk about previous unemployment figures or highlight figures from other parts of the country, when unemployment in Wolverhampton North East is still more than double the national rate.

“This Tory government is clearly failing to grow our economy equally across the country and create jobs in and around Wolverhampton.”