Sir Edward Leigh, the Conservative MP for Gainsborough, has hailed yet another decline in the unemployment rate for his constituency. The Office for National Statistics revealed the number of jobseekers in Gainsborough stands at 1,457, a 23.8 per cent drop from the same time last year.

“I’m very pleased that we have 456 fewer people on the Jobseeker’s Allowance here in Gainsborough,” the MP of thirty years’ standing said. “The number of young unemployed has declined as well, with a 24.8 per cent drop in the number of unemployed ages 18-24 here in the constituency.”

“The private sector is driving growth,” Sir Edward continued. “The increase in private-sector employment is over five times the fall in public sector jobs, and we have nearly 2.2 million more people employed in the private sector than in 2010. The overwhelming majority of these – 76 per cent – are in full-time jobs. Overall, the country’s jobs-wanted figure is at 718,000, the highest number since records began.”

“We’ve also increased prosecutions of tax dodgers fivefold to ensure the very rich are paying their share. Meanwhile, Ed Balls is attacking ordinary working people and saying they should demand receipts for small cash jobs. I’d say he’s got his priorities wrong.”