Employment numbers on the up

More people are in work and unemployment has dropped, new figures released by the government yesterday have revealed.

According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), 274,000 people found jobs in 2006, as well as 14,000 in the last quarter.

The labour market was also believed to be in a solid position, with 29 million people being in work between September and November 2006, one of the highest figures on record.

Jim Murphy, minister of state for employment and welfare reform, said the figures provided "welcome news".

He added: "The UK already has the highest employment rate of the G8, but we are determined to reach our long-term aim of an 80 per cent employment rate and to break the cycle of poverty and benefit dependency."

Figures released by the Office of National Statistics this week have also shown that average pay rose by 3.7 per cent in the year to November 2006.

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