Official figures show that the number of people out of work and looking for a job in Scotland has decreased to 3.9%, which is below the UK average.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures for June to August showed that Scotland's jobless total decreased from 120,000 (4.3%) in the previous quarter to 106,000.
Scotland's finance secretary Derek Mackay MSP said:
“There are now 132,000 fewer people unemployed in Scotland than the recession peak and we continue to outperform the UK on both employment and unemployment rates for women and young people.
“Despite the ongoing risks posed by Brexit, our ambitious economic strategy will create the right environment for job growth.
“This includes commitments on the Scottish National Investment Bank and Manufacturing Institute, and in this year’s Programme for Government we have committed to the biggest infrastructure spend Scotland has ever seen.”
Kenneth Gibson MSP commented:
“We can see how Scotland benefits from the SNP Government’s actions to minimise unemployment and increase productivity.
“In August, we saw that the proportion of young people in Scotland in education, training or employment had increased to a record 91.8%,
“Last month we learned that in the first half of this year, Scottish GDP grew by 0.8% compared to 0.6% in the UK.
“For these achievements to now be followed up by such a significant decline in unemployment is another heartening development, which attests to the fact that despite a challenging economic climate, Scotland is on the right track.”
ENDS
