Scots jobless rates sees dramatic fall

The number of Scots out of work has fallen to a new post-recession low, official figures have shown.

Keith Brown will be boosted by the fall in unemployment

There has been a fall of 19,000 in unemployment to 104,000 north of the border in the three months to May, while the number of people in work soared by 25,000.

It is the latest boost for Scotland's economy Secretary Keith Brown after the country escaped recession last week with a major boost in GDP of 0.8%.

The Scottish picture reflects an encouraging situation across the UK, where unemployment fell by 64,000 to 1.49 million in the three months to May, meaning the jobless rate is at its lowest since 1975, at 4.5%, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). But this is still above the Scottish jobless rate of 3.8%.

The number of people classed as economically inactive Scotland - who have effectively stopped looking for work - was also down by 2,000, the figures today show.