“Despite ongoing uncertainty it’s encouraging that businesses are starting to press ahead with investment, which means across the board we are starting to see the data moving in the right direction. This is most pronounced in the continued rise of temporary work, where employers have been looking at flexible approaches and hiring has been growing for several months, and permanent hiring is starting to turn a corner.

“Over the past 45 months we have seen the longest recorded period of contraction in the permanent placements index, so to finally have it stable is a big milestone. With a new Government in place, businesses will be looking for signs that the new policies can translate into greater confidence to invest and hire”.