Scottish jobless figures '˜horrifying' with over 7% out of work

Official figures showed a rise in unemployment 8,000 north of the border despite the jobless total across the UK falling over the period August to October.

Official figures showed a rise of 8,000 north of the border despite the jobless total across the UK falling over the period August to October.

At the same time, the number of Scots who were in work dropped by 21,000, accounting for almost two fifths of the 56,000 decrease in employment experienced across Britain.

Office for National Statistics (ONS) data showed 2.65 million people in work across Scotland in the same three-month period.

The employment total is 59,000 higher than 12 months ago and unemployment has fallen by 32,000 over the year.

The figures showed more women are now working, but the number of people without a job in Scotland increased.

Female unemployment fell from 47,000 to 39,000 over the period August to September – a drop of 15.8 per cent.

In contrast, the number of men without a job went from 59,000 to 74,000 – a rise of 25.5 per cent.

The figures were released little more than 24 hours before the Scottish Government publishes its budget plans for 2018/19.

The unemployment rate in Scotland rose slightly to 4.1 per cent from August to October.

The figures showed 74.9 per cent of people aged 16 to 64 were in work, down from 75.8 per cent in the previous quarter.

Amongst those aged 16 to 64, there were 110,000 out of work while 2.56 million were in employment. Unemployment in this age group was up by 8,000 over the quarter, while the number with a job fell by 32,000.

Scottish Liberal Democrat economy spokeswoman Councillor Carolyn Caddick said the latest jobless figures “will horrify people”.