Big cities outside London saw the most job losses in the past year as the UK entered recession, a new study shows.
Birmingham suffered the largest rise in the number of people on unemployment benefit - 12,383 - in the 12 months to February, the Work Foundation found.
Leeds, Glasgow, Sheffield, Hull, Manchester, Bradford, Liverpool, Bristol and the area of Kirklees also saw big increases in joblessness.
The study was based on official figures covering the year to February.
The Work Foundation said unemployment had risen most sharply in the north of England, the West Midlands, Scotland and areas dominated by traditional manufacturing and heavy industry.
Birmingham topped the list of job losses, with the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance rising from 33,274 in February 2008 to 45,657 in February 2009. This took the claimant rate from 5.3% to 7.3%.
However, the biggest changes in percentage terms came in council areas that have never experienced the benefits of the UK's economic boom, the Work Foundation said.
