Finance Secretary John Swinney has called for more action from the UK Government in ensuring a package is put in place to reflate the real economy and tackle unemployment.

He made these comments after the latest labour market statistics showed the number of unemployed increased by 164,000 between June and August – the biggest rise experienced for 17 years. The latest figures show that 1.79 million people across the country are now unemployed.

The Office for National Statistics also reported that the number of vacancies has also dropped; in the three months to September the number of job vacancies had fallen to 608,000 – down 62,000 compared to the previous year. 

Commenting on the figures, Swinney said: "These figures are obviously disappointing, but they confirm everything that the Scottish Government has been saying about how the financial crisis is impacting on the real economy. 

"There must now be measures to reflate the wider economy, and within our fixed budget the Scottish Government has already announced a package of measures including accelerated investment in affordable housing, and the economic Cabinet identified a six-point programme to help business and hard pressed households.

"We also need a programme of reflation from the UK Government to boost the wider economy.  That needs to include a relaxation of Treasury rules so that we can access Scottish resources, such as the Fossil Fuel Levy and our own underspend, for investment in economic activity now."

Swinney reported that Scotland's market was still "relatively strong", with International Labour Organisation unemployment figures significantly lower than the rest of the UK.

The UK Government has so far dedicated an extra £100 million to retrain people who have lost their job as a result of the economy slowdown.