The labour market continues to ease with falls in employment and rises in unemployment and economic inactivity. Most troubling is that the UK is the only G7 country where employment remains lower than pre-pandemic levels. This is driven by rises in economic inactivity, with 2.8 million people economically inactive due to long-term sickness, a record high. The answers are to get the economy growing and offer more and better help to find work to people who are economically inactive. The number of people economically inactive due to long-term sickness who get help to find work each year is only half the number who want a job. That needs to change.

The rises in unemployment and economic inactivity, which first became apparent towards the end of last year, continue to grow, as do the numbers of individuals claiming out-of-work benefits. Alongside this, long-term unemployment is increasing, both for those aged 16 to 24 and those aged 25 or more. This is against a backdrop of falling vacancies, resulting in more people chasing each job. Action is needed to prevent more people from slipping into long-term unemployment, which is only likely to compound their difficulties in finding work.