19,000 more jobless in Scotland

The number of people unemployed in Scotland has risen by 19,000, to 168,000 during the first three months of the year, according to new figures by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The statistics also showed the number of those employed fell by 3,000 in the same period, although the rate of economic activity is up.

At 6 per cent, the Scots unemployment rate is above the rate of 5.5 per cent for the UK as a whole.

New Scottish Secretary David Mundell said the figures were a “stark reminder of the of the difficult economic situation we have come through”, and highlighted “difficult decisions” the UK Government had taken to rebalance the economy.

“Both the UK and Scottish Government agree job creation is absolutely crucial and I hope we can work together on this issue and many more in the months and years ahead for the benefit of people in our country,” he said.

The Scottish Government highlighted positives in the figures, including the lowest youth unemployment level since 2008, and an increase in female employment, with a participation rate of 76.6 per cent.

Cabinet Secretary for Fair Work Roseanna Cunningham said the rise in unemployment was in part due to more people joining the labour market and looking for work.

“Today’s figures show that we are continuing to make excellent progress in creating a workforce that properly reflects our society with a record high in female labour market participation. A record high in economic activity is also hugely encouraging when compared to the rest of the UK,” she said.

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie said the overall figures were going in the wrong direction. "My fear is that Scottish ministers are spending their time playing power games at Westminster rather than focussing on their own day jobs," he said.

Andy Willox, the Federation of Small Businesses’ (FSB) Scottish policy convenor, said the Government needed to better support small and medium sized businesses, who sustain over a million jobs.

“These lukewarm national figures also mask a story of uneven recovery. While the future looks bright in some localities, others aren’t so fortunate. We need new strategies to turn around these communities, and their local enterprises need to be at the centre of these plans,” he said.