New jobs in Scotland but unemployment edges upwards

Around 3,000 Scots have found work in the past three months, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have revealed.

The Scottish unemployment figures now stand at 140,000 or 5.4%. The total unemployment figure for the UK is also down to 1.43 million (4.7%) from the start of the quarter.

Scotland Office minister, David Cairns, said: "More than three-quarters of our working-age population are in work, giving us a higher employment rate than the UK and most other EU countries. Unemployment levels remain close to historic lows and there are fewer people outside the labour market."

But there are still 5,000 more unemployed people this year than last year, according to the ONS figures.