Jobless benefit claims rise 112%

The number of people claiming unemployment benefits per job vacancy in Britain has increased fivefold since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, according to an employment thinktank. The Institute for Employment Studies (IES) says approximately eight people are claiming benefits support for every job opening, an increase from 1.5 people per job before the crisis began in March. Paid employment in Britain has fallen almost 650,000 employees since March – here are examples of businesses and recruitment agencies inundated with applications.

Thousands of more holidays are set to be canceled after the UK government’s recommendation against all but essential travel to mainland Spain was extended to include the Canary and Balearic Islands. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) neglected British citizens stranded abroad during the peak of the Covid-19 outbreak, failing to organize charter flights swiftly or communicate meaningfully with those marooned, a damning report by MPs has said. More coronavirus developments at our global live blog – in our latest wrap, the World Health Organization chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has warned that the pandemic continues to accelerate, with the number of cases worldwide doubling in the past six weeks, nearly six months after it declared a “public health emergency of international concern”.