ONS reports another rise in unemployment

ONS reports that the unemployment rate has increased to 5.5 per cent. The number of unemployed people increased by 81,000 over the quarter and by 72,000 over the year, to reach 1.72 million.

The employment rate has fallen to 74.7 per cent for the three months to July 2008, down 0.2 from the previous quarter but up 0.2 over the year.

The number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance benefit has risen and the number of job vacancies has fallen.