UK jobless claims more than doubled to almost 3 million during the virus lockdown, adding urgency to Bank of England and government efforts to cushion the blow. The number of people seeking unemployment benefits increased by more than 1.5 million in the two months through May, the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday. Separate figures showed wage growth slowed to the weakest since 2014. The taxpayer is now paying the wages for almost than 12 million jobs at a cost of more than £28 billion in an effort to prevent a wave of mass unemployment over the summer. Separate figures Tuesday showed more than 9 million jobs are currently furloughed, around 40% of all private-sector employees, with another 2.6 million self-employed workers also receiving support.

Source: News 24 June 16, 2020 10:28 UTC