Kemi Badenoch on unemployment and payrolled jobs, PMQs 12 November 2025

The statement

Yesterday, we learned that unemployment has risen to the same rate as it was in lockdown—180,000 jobs lost.

Kemi Badenoch, 12 November 2025. Source

What the sources report

• Office for National Statistics, series MGSX (Unemployment rate (aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted): %), release of 2026-09-14 reports unemployment rate, aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted (Jul–Sep 2025): 5.1%^src
• Office for National Statistics, series MGSX (Unemployment rate (aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted): %), release of 2026-09-14 reports unemployment rate, aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted (Sep–Nov 2020): 5.3%^src
• Office for National Statistics, series MGSX (Unemployment rate (aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted): %), release of 2026-09-14 reports unemployment rate, aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted (Nov–Jan 2021): 5%^src
• Office for National Statistics, Earnings and employment from PAYE RTI, UK: November 2025 reports change in payrolled employees, October 2025 compared with October 2024 (early estimate): -180000employees^src
• Office for National Statistics, series MGSX reports unemployment rate, aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted (Apr–Jun 2026, latest): 4.7%^src

Notes

The ONS series now shows unemployment of 5.1% for July to September 2025, the figures published on 11 November 2025.

During the 2020 and 2021 lockdowns the series shows 5.3% for September to November 2020 and 5.0% for November 2020 to January 2021.

The ONS early estimate for October 2025 put payrolled employees at 30.3 million, 180,000 fewer than in October 2024. Payrolled employees are a count of jobs on PAYE payrolls, which is a different measure from unemployment.