The UK unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest level in seven years, according to figures released today by the Office for National Statistics.

The rate fell to 5.4% in the three months to August, with the number of people in work rising by 140,000. The employment rate now stands at 73.6 percent, this highest since records began.

The number of people out of work was 1.77 million between June and August.

However, pay growth was slower than anticipated by analysts, at 2.3 percent during the last quarter, down from 2.9 percent in July. This figure is one that will be closely considered by the Bank of England when deciding when to raise rates.