The number of people claiming jobless benefit fell to its lowest in more than a year in June, while the number of people in work jumped the most in almost four years, official data showed yesterday. The figures also showed a marked slowdown in earnings growth, which should reassure Bank of England policymakers that rising prices are not yet feeding through into pay demands. The ONS said the number of people claiming jobless benefit fell by 20,800 in June, its fifth consecutive monthly fall and a slightly bigger decline than the 20,000 analysts had forecast. That pushed the claimant count rate down to 4.5%, the lowest since March 2009. The number of people without a job on the wider ILO measure fell by 34,000 to 2.468 million in the three months to May. That took the jobless rate to 7.8%, the lowest since January and below forecasts for a reading of 7.9%. The number of people in work rose by 160,000 in the three months to May, the biggest rise since August 2006, but the increase was mainly due to a record 148,000 rise in the number of part-time workers, suggesting companies may be reluctant to commit on a long-term basis.