Responding to the ONS figures, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Pat McFadden said the data “underline the scale of the challenge we’ve inherited”.
“That is why we are investing £1.5bn to deliver 50,000 apprenticeships and 350,000 new workplace opportunities for young people – giving them real experience and a foot in the door.
Helen Whately, shadow work and pensions secretary, accused the government of implementing “growth-killing policies” that would lead to job losses in the run up to Christmas.
“Fourteen months in a row of higher unemployment means thousands of families will be struggling through the holiday season and without a steady income heading into the New Year.”
ONS statistics are used in deciding government policy, which affects millions, and are also used by the Bank of England to make key financial decisions, such as setting interest rates.
But a review of the ONS was highly critical of the agency, calling into question the quality of the economic data it produces.
The ONS has struggled, as have many statistical bodies, with tight budgets and with the problem of getting people to fill in the questionnaires needed for their data.
Specifically with employment and wage figures, the response rate for the Labour Force Survey is consistently low.
Only one in four of businesses responded to this employment survey.