UK unemployment rate falls despite end of job furlough scheme

Jobless rate falls to 4.2% as number of workers on company payolls rises by 257,000

Unemployment in the UK fell in October despite the end of the furlough scheme, according to official figures, as companies continued to hire amid record numbers of staff vacancies.

The Office for National Statistics said the unemployment rate fell to 4.2% in the three months to the end of October, representing about 1.4 million people, down from 4.3% in the three months to the end of September.