London job-seekers optimistic after election
The number of people looking for jobs in the City surged between November and December, according to a new report, suggesting that Boris Johnson’s emphatic election victory could prove a turning point for the Square Mile’s jobs market.
However, the rise was not enough to outweigh the bruising effects of a year of Brexit uncertainty, and the City’s jobs market finished 2019 in a much worse position than it was in a year earlier.
The number of people looking for jobs grew 38 per cent between November and December, according to data released today by recruitment firm Morgan McKinley. Over the same period, the number of jobs available grew six per cent.
Yet compared to a year earlier there was a 42 per cent decrease in the number of jobs available in the final three months of the year, reflecting a torrid period as the final Brexit deal was negotiated and a General Election was held.
Hakan Enver, managing director at Morgan McKinley Financial Services, said the data showed the UK economy is improving after a bad year.
He said: “2020 will mark a turnabout for the City. You could hear a collective sigh of relief across London when the election results came in.”
“Everyone is sick and tired of Brexit and eager to put it in the rearview mirror where it belongs.”
However, recent data from Natwest showed that London firms become more worried about Brexit as the government’s position on negotiations became clearer over the last few months of the year. The capital is now more pessimistic about Brexit than the rest of the country.
Enver said that firms are ready for things to change after the year-long transition period that will begins when Britain leaves the EU on 31 January.
“Businesses have spent over two years preparing for a worst case scenario. It was unpleasant and it was costly, but they are ready. There isn’t much the divorce can throw our way that can’t be handled.”