Jobs boost on the horizon

MORE London firms plan to increase their recruitment drives than at any time in the last three years.

In the latest sign that the capital's economy is bouncing back strongly, a survey from recruitment specialist Manpower shows a net 15% intend to hire more staff over the next three months, up from 9% in the previous quarter.

It is the highest reading since the start of 1991 and chimes with a number of separate reports indicating London's employment situation is improving.

Pat Manning, divisional director for Manpower in London, said: 'There's a definite resurgence in confidence in London which is good news for the capital as well as the country as a whole. The renewed employer hiring confidence is particularly being driven by an upturn in fortunes in the financial sector.

'On top of this, we're also seeing a general uplift among general commercial work. Of further encouragement is that there's a noticeable increase in permanent placements as opposed to simply temporary positions,' she said.

The story is repeated across most of the country, as 11 of the 12 regions plan to take on more staff, with only the East Midlands bucking the trend.

Most industry sectors intend to recruit, with transport and communications the most optimistic. However, manufacturing expects to continue to swing the axe.

The monthly Royal Bank of Scotland London poll last week showed firms in the capital hired more staff than they fired for the second month in a row in November.