One third of all jobs in the Tees Valley had been furloughed by employers due to the coronavirus crisis as at the end of June, according to analysis.

Information contained in a Tees Valley Combined Authority report also revealed that 96,000 jobs had been given support by that point through either the Government’s coronavirus job retention programme or a scheme providing grants to the self-employed.

Meanwhile, there were an extra 14,426 universal credit claimants in the Tees Valley in June as opposed to June of last year.

The authority is drawing up an economic recovery plan in response to the crisis and has surveyed more than 1,150 businesses in a bid to understand the impact of the pandemic on the regional economy.

Redcar and Cleveland councillor Sue Jeffrey told the authority’s overview and scrutiny committee: “There could be 3,000 job losses in my borough.

“We have 15,000 workers on furlough and we know that one of the sectors where we are looking for growth – the tourism sector – that has been hit hugely by the covid situation.

“This is a huge crisis in my own borough, goodness only knows what is happening in the others.”

Cllr Jeffrey called for a review of strategic investments being made by the authority to look at where money was being spent and if it was being spent in the right places.

She said: “Unless we do that how we can we ensure that we are refocusing our resources onto changed priorities as we go forward?

“I am concerned about when are we going to see the economic recovery plan, what is it going to contain and are we going to ensure that it includes all the sectors where we are looking to secure growth.”

Stockton Council leader Bob Cook said he was concerned about creative industries, some parts of which had not re-opened since the coronaivrus outbreak.

He said: “I hope we are working towards a recovery plan for the Tees Valley to get those industries back up and running as quickly as possible.

“We do need to measure where we are putting in money and whether we are getting value for the money and the jobs the investment is there for.”

The report by Shona Duncan, the authority’s head of education, employment and skills, considered the immediate impact of covid-19 and said action was  needed to protect manufacturing and construction sectors, while ensuring continued activity among small to medium sized businesses.

Building blocks also needed to be created for future growth by stimulating investment and ensuring the right conditions for the development of digital technology and clean energy.

Chief executive Julie Gilhespie said: “Over the past few months we have concentrated on identifying the emergency responses we need to make to deal with things that are happening now.

“We have had a huge consultation exercise with local authorities and the business sector and also commissioned a very detailed piece of work to look at what the short, medium and long term impact on the Tees Valley economy will be so we can make the appropriate interventions where necessary.

“That work is still ongoing, but it is very close to being completed.”