Unemployment falls again....

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

...... in Scotland.:beer:

Unemployment in Scotland has fallen slightly, according to the latest official statistics.

The number of people seeking work fell by 3,000 to 204,000 between May and July and by 33,000 over the year.

The Scottish unemployment rate now stands at 7.5%, below the UK average of 7.9%.

Employment also increased by 23,000 over the three-month period - and by 36,000 over the year - to stand at 2,496,000.

Public sector employment in Scotland fell by 25,200 in the year to the second quarter of 2011, while 57,700 more people found jobs in the private sector over the same period.

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

Consumer confidence may be weak, but business confidence in Scotland is doing relatively well, according to recent survey evidence. It's now supported by the latest employment data.

There were fears that Scotland's dependence on public sector jobs would hurt it more than in the rest of the UK when the government spending cuts hit home.

And although these figures show the Scottish public sector shedding jobs at a much faster rate than elsewhere, its private sector is taking up the slack at a faster pace.

It's not what Scots are used to, so why is it happening? The Scottish government is taking credit for its capital spend, policies on skills and attracting foreign investment, notably in renewable energy.

And the sectors doing best - in engineering, oil and gas and whisky - are not only leaner and fitter, but also selling into some of the strongest growth markets worldwide.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-14907090

Scotland confounding the doom-mongers.

Good to see.:beer:

Loughton_Monkey

I recommend that all asylum seekers, EEC migrants, and benefits claimants who are unemployed and want a job, to re-locate to Scotland. I recommend the use of a new "Relocation Tax Credit" of, say, £500 to those wishing to relocate, as compensation for loss of warmer weather and inside toilets.

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

Loughton_Monkey wrote: »

inside toilets.

Fascinating invention.

The use of which has yet to be learned by our resident bears.

Butterfly_Brain

That is not quite correct, this is how it has been reported on the BBC news channel

"Unemployment rose by 80,000 in the three months to July, to 2.51 million.
That is the largest increase in nearly two years, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, with youth unemployment, in particular, rising sharply, by 78,000 to 973,000."

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

Butterfly_Brain wrote: »

That is not quite correct,"

Oh, it most certainly is.

Having a hard time reading the first two words in the thread this morning, are we?

abaxas

mystic_trev wrote: »

Probably due to the surge in demand for deep fried Mars Bars.

Washed down with buckfast and 6 pills.

kabayiri

This attraction of falling unemployment in Scotland has not been lost on the coalition cabinet believe me. They wanted to form a working party to go and visit Scotland and see how they have achieved this.

Sadly, no Tory member of government has the faintest idea where Scotland is .

nomoreboomandbust

According to BBC news it was mostly due to motorway building/improvements, so yes it looks like they are throwing more english taxpayers money at the problem.

And by the way, Alex Salmond was looking incredibly smug when interviewed.

ultrawomble

nomoreboomandbust wrote: »

According to BBC news it was mostly due to motorway building/improvements, so yes it looks like they are throwing more english taxpayers money at the problem.

And by the way, Alex Salmond was looking incredibly smug when interviewed.

Don't worry, the advantage to the taxpayer is the reduced life expectancy in Scotland - some 4 years shorter than in England - so less pension payouts etc.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2011/jun/08/life-expectancy-uk-data-health

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

nomoreboomandbust wrote: »

Alex Salmond was looking incredibly smug when interviewed.

Not surprising.

There's a lot to be smug about.:beer: