AN MP has welcomed the latest unemployment figures - which reveal a slight fall in the number of people out of work.

Unemployment figures for Worcester were released yesterday (Wednesday) and show 1,000 people were out of work in December 2016, compared to 1,030 the month before.

However, there has been a 16 per cent increase in unemployment since December 2015.

Robin Walker, MP for Worcester, said: “I welcome the fact that they are down again, albeit only a small amount - I would like to see them down even further.

“We have seen amazing stability over the past year. Every month, unemployment has been below 1.6 per cent in Worcester.

“In one sense that is good because it is really low, but I want to see everyone who wants a job being able to get one.

“I think we need a bigger effort to make sure we are pushing to get the people who are the furthest from work into the workplace.”

He continued to say more needs to be done to encourage people to take up apprenticeships. In addition, he stressed the importance of helping disabled people into work.

The latest figures also show the number of people aged between 18 and 24 claiming unemployment benefit has dropped from 250 in November 2016, to 230 in December.

But the statistics reveal an 21 per cent increase in the number of young people out of work since December 2015.

However, compared to figures from December 2010, there has been a tremendous 58 per cent drop in overall unemployment across the city.

Mandy Bateman, of Worcester’s Jobcentre Plus, said: “We have had strong times in the labour market over the last few years and it is certainly lower than it was at the end of the recession.”

In Wychavon - home to Pershore, Evesham and Droitwich - 645 people were jobless in December 2016, a five per cent increase on the year before.

And across the Malvern Hills district 435 people were out of work at the end of last year, showing a 16 per cent increase from December 2015.

Nationally, unemployment is at an 11-year low.

Employment Minister, Damian Hinds, said: “We start the new year with another encouraging set of figures. It’s good news in the West Midlands where there’s a near record of 2.71 million people in work, a rise of 76,000 in the last year alone.”