Unemployment in Scotland fell by 9,000 in the three months to August, according to new figures.

The government's preferred figure from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) puts the number of Scots out of work over the summer at 167,000.

The ILO figure is the widest measure of unemployment and includes those not eligible for benefit.

It puts the unemployment rate for the period at 6.5%.

Anne McGuire: "No scope for complacency"

The claimant count for September showed a slight increase.

It rose by 100 last month to 101,500, a drop of 2,600 over the past 12 months.

The figures, published by the Office for National Statistics, showed 73.7% of working-age Scots had jobs, a 0.3% rise on the same period a year earlier.

Commenting on the figures, Scotland Office Minister Anne McGuire claimed the long-term prospects for the labour market in Scotland remained strong.

She said: "The government's policies to build macroeconomic stability and improve the performance of the labour market have ensured that unemployment in Scotland remains around the lowest for a generation and employment remains close to historic highs.

Unacceptably high level

"Given global uncertainties, there is no scope for complacency. Scotland does, however, continue to fare better than many of our continental partners."

The Scottish National Party's economy spokesman Andrew Wilson condemned Labour's record on unemployment.

He said: "The contempt that new Labour politicians have for the unemployed is breathtaking.

"They have sat on their hands and done nothing to tackle the fact that unemployment remains at an unacceptably high level and they have failed to tackle Scotland's ongoing and long-term economic under performance."