Record number of Brits are economic inactive

The figures show that those officially unemployed fell between November and January, leading to a claimant count of 1.59 million by the start of February.

The statistics represent the biggest monthly reduction since the end of 1997.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said it was "great news for millions of people" but warned the government not to endanger the recovery with early spending cuts.

The much-needed good news for the government was tempered by separate figures showing that a record 8.16 million people were found to be economically inactive, which include students and the long-term disabled.

Long-term unemployment has also seen a huge spike, with the number of people out of work for longer than a year jumping by 61,000 to 687,000, the worst figure since 1997.

Office of National Statistics figures show that certain regions in Britain are suffering disproportionately in the recession, with Wales and the north of England facing nearly 10 per cent unemployment.

Unison general secretary Dave Prentis warned that the trend of heavy job losses must be halted.

"Many Tory councils are using the recession as an excuse to cut jobs even though they have billions stashed away in reserves," he said.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow said more job losses were in the pipeline.

"These figures mask the job cuts that are being lined up by employers over the coming months, not least the threat to axe 1,500 safety-critical jobs on Network Rail maintenance," he said.