By Andrew Goodacre

New employment figures released last week should be a wake-up call for the government.

Retail and wholesale employment fell by 1.7 per cent in December, with 72,000 fewer people in work compared to the same period last year. Vacancies dropped 6.2 per cent year on year. These aren't just statistics - they represent hard-working people losing their livelihoods.

What makes this particularly galling is the government's response to struggling sectors. The Chancellor has chosen to direct business rates relief exclusively to pubs, whilst ignoring retail entirely. This might make political sense if hospitality were the bigger employer. But it isn't. Not even close.

Retail and wholesale employ 4.2 million people, accounting for 13.9 per cent of all payrolled workers in the UK. Hospitality employs 2.1 million. Retail is nearly twice the size. If we genuinely care about protecting jobs, especially for younger........

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