bob seely parliament islands debate

MP welcomes news million more disabled people in work

This in from the office of Isle of Wight Conservative MP, Robert Seely.

This week’s figures from the Office of National Statistics showed that the number of people on the Isle of Wight claiming out of work benefits is higher than the same time last year and has risen since last month. Ed


Island MP Bob Seely has welcomed figures showing that nearly a million disabled people have found work since 2013.

The Department for Work and Pensions calculate there are 973,000 more disabled people in employment following government initiatives such as Disability Confident – a scheme designed to support businesses in recruiting and retaining disabled people and people with health conditions.

Record high
Figures also show the employment level is at a new record high, and, at 4.1%, the unemployment rate has almost halved since 2010 when it stood at 8%.

In a further boost, three-quarters of this increase in employment has been in permanent, full time and higher skilled roles.

Seely: “Still work to do”
Bob said,

“These figures show this Government has done a great deal to get everyone into work and also show that wages have grown by 3.2% – the fastest wage growth in almost a decade – and above inflation for the last eight months.

“Youth unemployment is almost half the figure in 2010 and there is a near record high for women in work at 71%.

“There is still work to do but these figures show a robust jobs market and economy both on the Isle of Wight and across the country and this is very welcome.”