17 Jul 2002
Claimant count down, employment up
The number of people out of work and claiming benefit fell by 300 in June to 102,700. This is a reduction of 1,900 over the year. Employment in Scotland increased by 17,000 over the quarter to March-May 2002.
The claimant count unemployment rate in Scotland remains unchanged in June at 4.1 per cent.
Commenting on the statistics, Scottish Secretary Helen Liddell, said:
"These figures confirm that the long term prospects for the labour market in Scotland remain sound. Our policies to build macroeconomic stability and improve the performance of the labour market have ensured that unemployment in Scotland remains around the lowest for a generation and employment remains close to historic highs.
"Given global events there is no scope for complacency, and our policies for macroeconomic stability are now coming into their own. Scotland continues to fare better than many of our continental partners - average ILO unemployment in the EU is currently running at 7.6 per cent, 0.7 per cent higher than in Scotland.
"ILO unemployment has fallen by 39,000 since Spring 1997 and employment in Scotland has increased by 105,000 over the same period.
"The investment detailed in the Comprehensive Spending Review will help raise productivity and create the right conditions for growth and development.
"Invention and innovation are the key to long term national competitiveness. That is why we have increased funding for research council students.
"We see investment in skills, innovation, and productivity as crucial steps in ensuring the long term success of the Scottish economy."
Latest Data for Scotland
Claimant Count Unemployment
Claimant count unemployment in Scotland based on the seasonally adjusted number of people claiming benefit fell by 300 in June to 102,700 and fell by 1,900 over the year. The claimant count unemployment rate in June remained unchanged at 4.1 per cent.
Employment
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) indicates that the number of people in employment to March to May 2002 was 2,388,000 up 17,000 compared with the previous three months but down by 8,000 on the same period a year ago. The employment rate amongst those of working age rose by 0.6 per cent on the previous three months, to 73.5 per cent but was down by 0.4 per cent on the same period a year earlier.
International Labour Organisation (ILO) Unemployment
Seasonally adjusted ILO unemployment in Scotland increased by 8,000 in March to May 2002 compared to the previous three months to 176,000. The ILO unemployment rate increased by 0.2 per cent to 6.9 per cent. Compared with the equivalent period one year earlier, ILO unemployment increased by 28,000 with the rate also increasing by one per cent.
NOTES FOR NEWS EDITORS
1. The count of those claiming unemployment-related benefits continues to provide a full and timely range of data at sub-Scotland level for local authorities, TTWAs and parliamentary constituencies. The claimant count is also the main source of information on unemployment by age and duration. Data on claimant count unemployment in the New Deal age and duration groups are available from 1985.
2. The internationally comparable International Labour Organisation (ILO) measure of unemployment is the headline figure published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for UK regions/countries.
3. The ILO measure of unemployment, which is derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS), is published 12 times a year for an average of the three preceding consecutive months. ONS recommend that seasonally adjusted data should be compared with the previous non-overlapping three-month period: i.e. June-August data should be compared with March-May data. Quarter to quarter changes at country/regional level are particularly subject to sampling variability and should be interpreted in the context of changes over several quarters.