Jobless lowest level for a year

The national chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses welcomed today's unemployment figures, but said the government should give small businesses incentives to hire people on a full time basis.

Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said the jobs markets figures show that full time jobs are being created.

He said the majority of people looking for full time jobs are finding them, and only one fifth of those looking for full time work were being forced to work part time.

The British Chamber of Commerce has welcomed today's unemployment figures, but said that the rate of youth unemployment is still "unacceptably high."

Chief economist David Kern said the figures showed growth was still too weak.

The general secretary of the TUC has said it only a matter of time before the dole quest start rising again unless the government does more to help young people into employment. He said:

“Today’s fall in unemployment is welcome, but there are worrying trends brewing and with the economy getting smaller it may only be a matter of time before the dole queues start rising again.

Young people in particular are struggling to get their careers off the ground. The number of people under 25 who are neither working or in full-time education has risen again to nearly 1.5 million.

The government’s response to this youth jobs crisis has been poor. Successful initiatives have been scrapped and then reinstated with less funding.

Ministers must step up job support before unemployment starts rising again otherwise help will come too late for too many people.”

Unemployment has fallen to its lowest rate for a year, after a big jump in the number of people in work. Most of the quarterly fall was recorded in London, suggesting a big jobs boosts from the Olympics.

• Number of people out of work fell by 46,000 to 2.56 million
• Number of people in work increased by 201,000 to almost 30 million
• Number of people seeking jobseeker's allowance decreased by 5,900 to 1.59 million
• Number of part-time workers reached a record high of 8.07 million

• Number of people working part-time, because they cannot find a full time job is 1.42 million, the highest since 1992, according to the office of national statistics
• Average earnings increased by 1.6% in the year to June, up 0.1% on the previous month

• Youth unemployment fell by 4,000 to just over one million

Youth unemployment fell slightly in the last quarter according to the office of national statistics. The number of young people fell by 4,00 to just over one million.

Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith told Sky News he welcomed today's fall in unemployment figures.

The number of people claiming jobseeker's allowance last month fell by 5,900 to 1.59 million, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Unemployment fell by 46,000 between April and June to 2.56 million, official figures revealed today.