Welsh Government response to latest Labour Market Statistics – February 2026
Ymateb Llywodraeth Cymru i Ystadegau'r Farchnad Lafur diweddaraf - Chwefror 2026
The Welsh Government says:
“Evidence from a range of sources suggest the labour market in Wales has followed similar trends to the UK since the pandemic. Latest figures from the Annual Population Survey (APS) show the unemployment rate for people aged 16 and over in Wales was 4.5% compared to the UK rate of 4.2%.
“We have supported about 46,000 jobs this Senedd term through business support, and last week a record 20 renewable energy projects in Wales got UK Government backing with the potential to create thousands more new jobs.
“As we’ve said before, we’re quoting the Annual Population Survey because of concerns about the reliability of Labour Force Survey data. In fact, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) itself advises caution when taking these statistics as the only measure of the labour market in Wales. For greater accuracy it is recommended that a range of sources are used, while the ONS develops a new survey.”
Notes to editors
- The best way of understanding the Welsh labour market is to consider longer term trends across a range of sources. This includes alternative sources such as the Annual Population Survey, HMRC real time information on paid employees, data on workforce jobs, and the claimant count. Read more here:
- Our Communities for Work+ programme reaches out into local communities to provide a one-to-one mentoring service to support people with complex barriers to employment. Since 2022 Communities for Work+ has supported around 19,900 people into work.
- Our React Plus programme helps people find new employment in as short a time as possible by helping them to acquire the skills sought by recruiting employers and preventing progression into long-term unemployment and economic inactivity. Since 2022 ReAct+ has supported around 6,200 people.
- Jobs Growth Wales+ , our flagship programme launched under the Young Person’s Guarantee, provides a tailored package of support for young people aged 16-19 with training and development activities through employment, formal training or voluntary work, to aid their successful transition into the labour market. So far, there have been over 18,500 programme starts since JGW+ launched in April 2022.
- Labour market participation in Wales has increased since devolution – the employment rate gap between Wales and the UK has narrowed from 5.5 percentage points in 1999 to 3.2 percentage points in the year ending September 2025.