Unemployment strikes...

There are some figures in circulation about unemployment in MK. According to the Citizen newspaper Jobcentre staff recorded 274, 432, 516 and 530 new benefit claims during the past four weeks - more than double the figures recorded last year.

The BBC have also reported on the gender divide: According to the TUC women are likely to be more affected by the recession than men because "many job losses were occurring in retail and hospitality, where more women than men work." They are also more likely to work in smaller workplaces which often go unnoticed by the media.

With many families dependent on two incomes to pay the mortage this could get very difficult for many couples...

Isla and I remember Milton Keynes in the early nineties when recession last struck this city. We measured the problem by the decline and disapearance of book shops and their slow reappearance. At the lowest point there were no book shops except WH Smiths - all the rest were closed. It took a long time for the good years to come again - although they did. Since then we have been conscious that another economic downturn could really hurt our community. It may be more fragile than it appears.

Last week I learnt a lot about the problems of the more wealthy in South Bucks. This week I am concerned that the economic downturn is clearly affecting people with less room to manouvere.