UK unemployment up, govt borrowing at record high

The number of Britons claiming jobless benefit rose by less than expected in March, although the total in unemployment number surged higher, while government borrowing hit a record high, data showed on Wednesday.

Official data from the Office for National Statistics showed the claimant count rate rose by 73,700 in March, well below forecasts for a rise of 120,000.

However, the broader ILO measure, which includes those out of work but not claiming benefits, spiked by 177,000 in the three months to February, the biggest jump since 1991.

That pushed the level of total unemployment to its highest since early 1997, just before the Labour government took office.

British finance minister Alistair Darling is expected to announce a two billion pound package aimed at preventing school and university leavers from joining the dole queue and boosting services for the unemployed.

However, the government's ability to kick-start Britain's recession-hit economy with further large-scale fiscal stimulus is limited by the sharp deterioration in the public finances.

Government borrowing in the 2008/09 tax year totalled 89.958 billion pounds, much higher than the 77.6 billion pounds forecast in the government's pre-budget report last November, and the highest since records began in 1946/47.