UK unemployment claims surge 69 percent as pandemic takes hold | News | Al Jazeera
A measure of the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the United Kingdom leapt to its highest level since 1996 in April, the first full month of the government's coronavirus lockdown.
The claimant count rose by 856,500 - the biggest ever month-on-month jump - to 2.097 million, a 69 percent increase, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said on Tuesday.
