The number of people unemployed in the UK has edged up further.

The claimant count rose to 919,700 in February, up 14,600 on January, the biggest rise since 1992. It is up 102,000 on a year earlier.

For the three months to January, the number of people unemployed was 1,528,000, up 37,000 from the three months to October. This takes the unemployment rate up to 5%, from 4.9%.

Sue Dodd, director at Agile Intelligence, said: “This may prompt employers to try to pressurise employment agencies on price. They may ask why they’re paying such high margins.”

The figures come just two days after high street chemist Boots announced it is to axe 2,200 jobs from its warehouse division as it merges with Alliance UniChem.