Unemployment: 'Core strengths leave city well placed to recover'

JUST when it seems as though the jobs market can't get any tougher, the steady stream of bad news continues unabated.

Unemployment in some parts of Edinburgh had already gone up more than 70 per cent before the full impact of the meltdown of the global and national financial markets started to be felt.

Now those pressures are building, notably earlier this week when more than 2,000 job cuts were announced by Lloyds TSB. Perhaps inevitably, 150 of those jobs in the company which took over crisis-hit HBOS are expected to be lost in the Capital.

There seems little doubt that yet more pain will come before there is any sign of recovery – and with speculation growing of a "double dip" recession, few people can feel secure in their jobs right now.

Even the cosseted public sector is feeling a bit of pain, with workforce trimming at the UK and Scottish governments, and a likely pay freeze on the cards for local authority workers.

As we report today, a report for Scottish Enterprise suggests that 7,638 jobs will go this year in Edinburgh, and more than 30,000 across East Scotland by 2010. Growth in the jobs market is not expected until 2011 at the earliest.

All of which makes quite depressing reading. But Edinburgh's unemployment remains below the national average, and the core strengths of the city leave it well placed to recover. That may take some time, but the city remains one of the best places to do business, and therefore for workers, now and in the future.

Murray mania
ALL of Scotland can be proud of Andy Murray. His charge into the semi-finals at Wimbledon brings the very real prospect of the first Briton since Fred Perry to win the men's tournament at the SW19 grand slam.

Like the rest of the country, Edinburgh is going Murray manic – not just at the giant TV screen in Festival Square but in living rooms and pubs showing his games across the city. One has even come up with a special cocktail to celebrate Andy's achievements.

We're sure the whole of the Lothians will be roaring on Andy in his semi-final tomorrow and – if the tennis gods are willing – Sunday's final.

The young Scot has connections here, after all, having trained in the Capital and being a Hibs fan because his grandfather Roy Erskine played for the Easter Road club in the 1950s. But we are sure that even Hearts fans will be shouting for him...