The latest unemployment figures were published last week, and they made grim reading for the North East. Shadow Minister for Tyneside Alan Duncan MP said "These terrible figures show that the financial crisis is really starting to bite in high streets and businesses in the North East
"This region is being hit particularly hard, with people here almost twice as likely to be unemployed as those living in the south.
"23,000 people in the North East have lost their jobs in the last year alone but the Government has no idea of how to deal with the problem. Gordon Brown has squandered a decade of economic growth and now has nothing in the kitty to help people through the bad times. Our policy of offering tax cuts for new jobs is exactly the kind of action we need if we are to prevent further job losses and keep Britain working."
