Commenting on the release of official data which shows that Scottish unemployment fell by 10,000 in the three months to September, Liz Cameron, Director/Chief Executive of Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said:

“The welcome continuation of the trend of falling unemployment in Scotland reflects the optimism that businesses are experiencing and the positive recruitment plans that businesses have across a number of sectors.  The private sector is continuing to create new jobs, strengthening and rebalancing our economy for the better.

“However, as employment continues to grow, so too does the problem of skills shortages and hard to fill vacancies.  Governments north and south of the border need to tackle this with co-ordinated strategies aimed at ensuring that our domestic talent is better equipped with the skills that our businesses need and also that Scottish businesses are better able to recruit suitably skilled staff from beyond our shores.

“At a time when our economy and our demand for skills is growing, Scotland must be open to workers with the skills we need, whichever country they happen to come from.”