UNEMPLOYMENT has risen by 22,000, latest figures show.

And the number of manufacturing jobs lost since 1997 is over 1m.

The jobless total rose 22,000 to 1.4m in the three months to January.

The number of manu- facturing jobs fell 92,000 to 3.24m, the lowest figure since 1978. More than 1m jobs have now been lost in the sector since March, 1997, just before Labour came to power.

However, Government figures also showed that the number of people claiming unemployment- related benefit fell 700 to 813,300 last month.

Employment is at a record high of 28.57m.

The jobless tally for Huddersfield rose 83 to 1,718 in February. The Colne Valley total was 66 higher at 1,082 and unemployment in Dewsbury rose 30 to 972.