YORK is among the top 10 cities in the country for private sector job growth - but workers are £65 worse off each week, according to a national study.

A report on the state of the nation’s cities by think-tank Centre for Cities says urban centres have shouldered the highest proportion of local government cuts and have been hit especially hard by austerity.

It said York recorded the largest fall in average weekly salaries between 2017 and 2018 - from £514 per week to £449.

The average weekly wage last year put York among the 10 cities with the lowest weekly workplace earnings in the country.

But the study also says 3,000 more private sector jobs have been created in the city since 2016.

And York council has seen the largest increase in money raised from fees and sales, such as parking, of any city in the country.

A City of York Council spokesman said: “Today’s Cities Outlook Report features many positives about York - the skills level in York is at nearly 49 per cent of the population, far higher than any other city in the north of England, our digital connectivity is the fastest in the UK and we are seeing unprecedented investment in building new exciting commercial spaces across the city, bringing with it more jobs and more businesses into the city.

“We have a strong programme for attracting higher paying jobs to the city and have recently been successful in getting Leeds City Region funding to continue our efforts.”

Leader of the council Cllr Ian Gillies, who was quoted in the report, said: “Cities across the country have faced difficult decisions since 2010 with regards to cuts to some local funding. But they have also been able to increase service efficiency, and develop sustainable funding streams of their own.

“[The report] Cities Outlook 2019 offers a timely contribution to the evidence and understanding of how UK cities are financed, how this has changed and where both the pinch points and areas of opportunity are.

“In a critical Spending Review year, this report offers the government advice on what cities should be expecting, as the UK emerges from the age of austerity.”

The report also singled out York as one of 10 cities with the lowest growth in housing numbers since 2016, however the council has recently announced plans to build 600 new homes during the next five years.

But York Central MP Rachael Maskell criticised the council over the drop in weekly wages.

She said: “We’re seeing a broken local economy in York that is not working in the interests of the people in our city. A failure of leadership by the Tory Lib Dem Coalition in our city council has seen York record the eighth lowest number of homes actually built in the city compared to the rest of the country.

“It is a disgrace that the average wages in York dropped by more than any other city in Britain last year. We’ve had four wasted years of a council not seeking to improve the basics that residents rely on. People need a change in approach, one that focuses resolutely on improving everyday lives through access to genuinely affordable housing and secure work that pays a fair wage.”

The report adds that York council has seen a 10.4 per cent decrease in total spending since 2009, compared to the national average drop of 14.3 per cent.

York was also named as one of the cities with the lowest rate of people claiming jobseeker’s allowance.