The number of people out of work has risen, while the number of vacancies has fallen.

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the unemployment rate rose to 4.2% between December and February - its highest level for six months, as reported by the BBC.

There were 1.4 million people unemployed in the UK between December and February.

The unemployment rate for the three months to January was 3.9%.

And the number of economically inactive people - not in work or looking for work - increased from 21.8% to 22.2% of those aged 16 to 64, equating to 9.4 million people.

The number of UK vacancies fell by 13,000 between January and March to 916,000, which is still higher than pre-Covid levels.

Jane Gratton, deputy director public policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: "Too many firms are still struggling to find the people and skills they need to fill job vacancies. At the same time, real wage growth continues to rise, ramping up the cost of employment. All this acts as a brake on activity, profitability and investment.

"Government and employers need to find ways to bring more people back into the workforce and to train them for our current and emerging skills needs. As well as investing more in skills, it means removing barriers to work and ensuring job seekers are well prepared to succeed in the workplace.

"We are concerned by the growing number of people not looking for work, with a large chunk of those out of action due to long-term health issues. More must be done to help people with ill health stay in work and to help employers understand how best to support them."