Unemployment growth in the UK appears to be slowing down according to the ONS.

According to latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), unemployment in the UK rose by 88,000 to 2.47 million in the three months to August.

The rate of unemployment however remained at 7.9%, up 2.1% over the year, suggesting the unemployment rate may be levelling.

The 88,000 people made jobless during this quarter takes total job losses to 677,000 over the year.

Steve Webb, Liberal Democrat Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, commented: “If it is not tackled now it will be a devastating legacy of this recession.

“It is only a matter of time before a million young people will be looking for work yet the Government is still sitting on its hands for 10 months before it offers them help.”

The number of Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants also increased, reaching 1.63 million in September 2009. The figure is the smallest monthly rise in claimants since May 2008 and is smaller than estimated.

Nevertheless, the number of claimants has reached its highest level since April 1997.

Job vacancies remained the same at 434,000 in the three months to September 2009, unchanged from the previous quarter but down 163,000 over the year.

Average earnings, excluding bonuses, increased by 1.9% in the three months to August compared with the same quarter last year, the lowest annual growth rate since comparable records began in 2001.