HUNDREDS of jobless people in East Lancashire can look forward to a bright new year, according to union leaders.
Statistics compiled by the TUC show more than 1,000 people in the area could benefit from the Government New Deal scheme aimed at getting long term jobless back to work.
The scheme offers subsidised employment with companies being offered £60 a week rebate for six months for taking on people aged under 25 and £75 a week for those over.
Figures show that there are 385 people eligible for the New Deal scheme in Blackburn, 141 in Burnley, 164 in Hyndburn, 141 in Pendle, 70 in the Ribble Valley and 106 in Rossendale and Darwen.
"Unemployment may have fallen in the last year but far too many people have been without work for far too long," said TUC general secretary John Monks.
"In the North West alone more than 29,000 people are spending their second Christmas on the dole. The New Deal offers real hope to some of the most disadvantaged and alienated members of society."
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