Number Of Scots Unemployed Falls Again

The latest official unemployment figures are out and seems the number of people out of work in Scotland has gone down.

Unemployment fell by 11,000 to 205,000 in Scotland between March and May, compared with the previous three months.

The number of people in work increased by 20,000 over the period, taking the total to about 2.49 million.

The unemployment rate is 7.6% in Scotland, just below the UK average of 7.7%.

However, the number of people out of work and claiming Jobseekers Allowance in June was 141,300 - an increase of 1,500 over the month.

Scottish Secretary Michael Moore said, "Since last autumn the Scottish jobless figures have been heading in the right direction and this is encouraging.

The UK Government is continuing to work hard to set the right conditions to put the country on a path to long term sustainable growth.

However, I recognise that challenges remain and the Government's priority is to continue to support the economy by reducing the deficit and putting in place measures to encourage growth in the private sector.''

He said overseas trade has been identified as one area to help "rebalance'' the economy.

The Liberal Democrat MP added, "For this reason we have created a new Scottish trade group which will support our aim to increase exports from Scotland.''