UK jobless figures hits 2.2 million but pace slows-papers

Numbers out of work and claiming unemployment benefit rose by a far smaller than expected 57,000 last month. March's increase in headline claimant unemployment was also scaled down to a revised 66,000, against the 74,000 initially reported. This left the total rise in the jobless count over the past two months at less than the 136,000 leap in February alone. However, despite the rise being lower than expected, the increase means jobless figures hit 2.22 million in the first three months of 2009, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Supermarket chain Sainsb...