Employment levels at record high

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The number of people in work in Wales is at record levels, according to the latest government figures.

An Office for National Statistics report found employment had risen by 13,000 over the previous quarter.

The total number of people employed in Wales is now 1,352,000 or 72.2% of the workforce, an increase of 0.5%.

The unemployment figures fell slightly to 5.2% and remain below those of London, the Midlands, Yorkshire and under the UK average of 5.5%.

WALES EMPLOYMENT FIGURES Employed - 72.2%Unemployed - 5.2%Economically inactive 23.8%Source: ONS labour market statistics for Wales Nov-Jan

There was also a fall in the number of people in Wales not looking for work.

Those defined as "economically inactive", including students, those on sickness benefits and those opting out of the job market, fell by 7,000 but remained at 23.8%.

Enterprise minister Andrew Davies said the figures showed Wales' economy compared well with the rest of the UK.

He said: "Since 1999 over 140,000 additional jobs have been created in Wales and we have out-performed the UK in the number of jobs created.

"With employment at a record high and a sharp fall in economic inactivity, these latest figures clearly show how we have removed the blight of mass unemployment which scarred our communities during the 1980s and 1990s."