UK private sector growth picks up as optimism rises after budget, but jobless rate hits four-year high – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news

• Young people hit hard as UK unemployment marches upwards

ING’s UK economist James Smith has spotted that government hiring is no longer supporting the jobs market.

He writes:

Companies – especially in retail and hospitality – have been shedding workers this year, partly because of earlier tax and minimum wage hikes. Hiring surveys remain weak.

Until recently, that was helpfully offset by resilience in government hiring, but that appears to be changing. Public sector employment has also now fallen for three consecutive months, judging by those payroll numbers.