Overall UK employment levels are set to increase, according to the latest CIPD/KPMG quarterly survey.

The survey of almost 800 employers shows the overall net balance between the percentage of employers expecting to recruit and those expecting to cut staff across all sectors of the economy is now positive (+5%), the first time since winter 2008 and up from -5% in the previous quarter. 

The private sector recorded +29% (up from +5% in the previous quarter), while the net balance for the public sector is -43%, the largest negative balance since the survey began in 2004.